System for targeted delivery of therapeutic agents

ABSTRACT

The present invention provides a drug delivery system for targeted delivery of therapeutic agent-containing particles to tissues, cells, and intracellular compartments. The invention provides targeted particles comprising a particle, one or more targeting moieties, and one or more therapeutic agents to be delivered and pharmaceutical compositions comprising inventive targeted particles. The present invention provides methods of designing, manufacturing, and using inventive targeted particles and pharmaceutical compositions thereof.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is related to and claims priority under 35U.S.C. §119(e) to United States provisional patent application U.S. Ser.No. 60/788,532, filed Mar. 31, 2006 (the '532 application). The entirecontents of the '532 application are incorporated herein by reference.

GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

The United States Government has provided grant support utilized in thedevelopment of the present invention. In particular, National Institutesof Health/National Cancer Institute (contract number CA 119349) andNational Institutes of Health/National Institute of Biomedical Imagingand BioEngineering (contract number EB 003647) have supporteddevelopment of this invention. The United States Government may havecertain rights in the invention.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. Overone million people develop cancer each year, and approximately half ofall men and one third of all women in the United States will developcancer during their lifetimes.

Prostate cancer is the second most common type of cancer found inAmerican men (after skin cancer), and the second-leading cause of cancerdeath (after lung cancer). The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimatesthat 1 in 6 men will develop prostate cancer in his lifetime and 1 in 34men will die of the disease. The ACS further estimates that there willbe about 218,890 new cases of prostate cancer and about 27,050 deathsattributable to prostate cancer in the United States in 2007.

Most cancers, including prostate cancer, are frequently treated by acombination of approaches, including surgical removal of a tumor,chemotherapy, and/or radiation therapy. Surgical procedures are usuallynot sufficient to remove a tumor in its entirety, so surgery isfrequently accompanied by chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy.Chemotherapy involves the use of drugs to kill tumor cells, andradiation therapy involves treatment with high-energy rays (e.g. x-rays)to kill or shrink tumor cells.

Unfortunately, however, chemotherapy and radiation cause serious andsometimes life-threatening side effects, including fatigue; nausea;vomiting; pain; hair loss; anemia; central nervous system problems;infection; blood clotting problems; mouth, gum, and throat problems;diarrhea; constipation; nerve and muscle effects; kidney and bladdereffects; flu-like symptoms; fluid retention; and effects on sexualorgans.

Chemotherapy causes such severe side effects because the treatmentinvolves the systemic administration of cytotoxic agents to a patient.These agents cannot distinguish tumor cells from normal cells and,therefore, kill healthy cells as well as tumor cells. Side effects areworsened because a very large dose must be administered to the patientin order to deliver a therapeutically effective dose to a tumor site.Although radiation therapy is administered somewhat more locally thanchemotherapy, radiation treatment still results in the destruction ofnormal tissue in the vicinity of the tumor.

Thus, targeting of a therapeutic agent (e.g., to a particular tissue orcell type; to a specific diseased tissue but not to normal tissue; etc.)is desirable in the treatment of tissue specific diseases such as cancer(e.g. prostate cancer). For example, in contrast to systemic delivery ofa cytotoxic anti-cancer agent, targeted delivery could prevent the agentfrom killing healthy cells. Additionally, targeted delivery would allowfor the administration of a lower dose of the agent, which could reducethe undesirable side effects commonly associated with traditionalchemotherapy.

Therefore, there is a strong need in the art for systems for selectivelydelivering therapeutic agents to desired tissues or cells. There is afurther need for systems for targeting the delivery of cytotoxicanti-cancer agents to tumors, such as tumors associated with prostatecancer. The ability to control the precise level and location of atherapeutic agent in a patient would allow doses to be reduced, minimizeside effects, and open new avenues for “personalized” therapy.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides systems for selectively deliveringtherapeutic agents to particular organs, tissues, cells, and/orintracellular compartments. In certain embodiments, therapeutic agentsare to be specifically delivered to diseased tissues. In certainspecific embodiments, therapeutic agents are to be specificallydelivered to tumors (e.g. malignant tumors or benign tumors). Inspecific embodiments, therapeutic agents are to be delivered to tumorsassociated with prostate cancer.

The present invention provides targeted particles comprising a particle,one or more targeting moieties, and one or more therapeutic agents to bedelivered to an organ, tissue, cell, and/or intracellular compartment.In general, the cell is associated with a target which is able tospecifically bind to the targeting moiety. The therapeutic agent is ableto be delivered to the particular targeted organ, tissue, cell, and/orintracellular compartment once the target specifically binds to thetargeting moiety.

Any particle can be used in accordance with the targeted particles ofthe present invention. In some embodiments, particles are biodegradableand biocompatible. In general, a substance is considered to bebiocompatible if its addition to cells does not induce adverse effects.In general, a biodegradable substance is one that can be broken downunder physiological conditions.

In general, a particle in accordance with the present invention is anyentity having a greatest dimension (e.g. diameter) of less than 100microns (μm). In some embodiments, inventive particles have a greatestdimension of less than 10 μm. In some embodiments, inventive particleshave a greatest dimension of less than 1000 nanometers (nm). In someembodiments, inventive particles have a greatest dimension of less than900 nm, 800 nm, 700 nm, 600 nm, 500 nm, 400 nm, 300 nm, 200 nm, or 100nm.

In some embodiments, particles are spheres, spheroids, flat,plate-shaped, cubes, cuboids, ovals, ellipses, cyllinders, cones, orpyramids. In some embodiments, particles are microparticles (e.g.microspheres). In some embodiments, particles are nanoparticles (e.g.nanospheres). In some embodiments, particles are liposomes. In someembodiments, particles are micelles. Particles can be solid or hollowand can comprise one or more layers (e.g., nanoshells, nanorings).

In some embodiments, particles can comprise a matrix of polymers. Insome embodiments, a therapeutic agent to be delivered and/or targetingmoiety can be associated with the surface of, encapsulated within,surrounded by, and/or dispersed throughout a polymeric matrix.

In some embodiments, a polymeric matrix can comprise polyethylenes,polycarbonates, polyanhydrides, polyhydroxyacids, polypropylfumerates,polycaprolactones, polyamides, polyacetals, polyethers, polyesters,poly(orthoesters), polycyanoacrylates, polyvinyl alcohols,polyurethanes, polyphosphazenes, polyacrylates, polymethacrylates,polyureas, polystyrenes, and/or polyamines. In some embodiments, apolymeric matrix may comprise poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA),polyethylene glycol (PEG), and/or copolymers thereof. In someembodiments, a polymeric matrix can comprise dendrimers, proteins,carbohydrates, and/or nucleic acids.

In some embodiments, particles can be non-polymeric particles (e.g.metal particles, quantum dots, ceramics, inorganic materials, bone,etc.). In some embodiments, a therapeutic agent and/or targeting moietycan be covalently associated with a non-polymeric particle. In someembodiments, a therapeutic agent and/or targeting moiety can benon-covalently associated with a non-polymeric particle. In someembodiments, a therapeutic agent and/or targeting moiety can beassociated with the surface of, encapsulated within, surrounded by,and/or dispersed throughout a non-polymeric polymer.

In some embodiments, particles may optionally comprise one or moresurfactants, sugars, lipids, or release-retarding ingredients.

In certain embodiments, targeted particles in accordance with thepresent invention comprise a targeting moiety which specifically bindsto one or more targets associated with an organ, tissue, cell,extracellular matrix, and/or intracellular compartment. As used herein,the terms “target” and “marker” can be used interchangeably.

A targeting moiety may be a nucleic acid (e.g. aptamer), polypeptide(e.g. antibody), glycoprotein, small molecule, carbohydrate, lipid, etc.For example, a targeting moiety can be an aptamer, which is generally anoligonucleotide (e.g., DNA, RNA, or an analog or derivative thereof)that binds to a particular target, such as a polypeptide. In general,the targeting function of the aptamer is based on the three-dimensionalstructure of the aptamer. In some embodiments, a targeting moiety is apolypeptide (e.g. an antibody that specifically recognizes a tumormarker).

In some embodiments, a target may be a marker that is exclusively orprimarily associated with one or a few tissue types, with one or a fewcell types, with one or a few diseases, and/or with one or a fewdevelopmental stages. In some embodiments, a target can comprise aprotein (e.g. cell surface receptor, transmembrane protein, etc.), acarbohydrate (e.g. glycan moiety, glycocalyx, etc.), a lipid (e.g.steroid, phospholipid, etc.), and/or a nucleic acid (e.g. DNA, RNA,etc.)

In some embodiments, a target (i.e. marker) is a molecule that ispresent exclusively or in higher amounts on a malignant cell, e.g., atumor antigen. In some embodiments, a marker is a prostate cancermarker. In certain embodiments, the prostate cancer marker is prostatespecific membrane antigen (PSMA), a 100 kDa transmembrane glycoproteinthat is expressed in most prostatic tissues, but is more highlyexpressed in prostatic cancer tissue than in normal tissue.

The present invention provides methods for designing novel targetingmoieties. The present invention further provides methods for isolatingor identifying novel targeting moieties from a mixture of candidatetargeting moieties. Nucleic acid targeting moieties (e.g. aptamers) maybe designed and/or identified using any available method, includingSELEX and PICO, as described herein.

According to the present invention, any agents, including, for example,therapeutic agents (e.g. anti-cancer agents), diagnostic agents (e.g.contrast agents; radionuclides; and fluorescent, luminescent, andmagnetic moieties), prophylactic agents (e.g. vaccines), and/ornutraceutical agents (e.g. vitamins, minerals, etc.) may be delivered.Exemplary agents to be delivered in accordance with the presentinvention include, but are not limited to, small molecules (e.g.cytotoxic agents), nucleic acids (e.g. RNAi agents), proteins (e.g.antibodies), lipids, carbohydrates, hormones, metals, radioactiveelements and compounds, drugs, vaccines, immunological agents, etc.,and/or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, the agent to bedelivered is an agent useful in the treatment of cancer (e.g. prostatecancer).

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered may be a mixture ofpharmaceutically active agents. In some embodiments, the agent to bedelivered may be a mixture of anti-cancer agents. In some embodiments,inventive targeted particles are administered in combination with one ormore of the anti-cancer agents described herein.

Inventive targeted particles may be manufactured using any availablemethod which does not interfere with the targeting function of thetargeting moiety. In some embodiments, targeting moieties and/ortherapeutic agents are covalently associated with a particle, andrelease and delivery of the therapeutic agent to a target site occurs bydisrupting the association. In some embodiments, targeting moietiesand/or therapeutic agents are not covalently associated with a particle.For example, particles may comprise a polymeric matrix, and therapeuticagents may be associated with the surface of, encapsulated within,and/or distributed throughout the polymeric matrix. Therapeutic agentscan be released by diffusion, degradation of the particle, and/orcombination thereof.

Physical association can be achieved in a variety of different ways.Physical association may be covalent or non-covalent and may or may notinvolve a cross-linking step. The particle, targeting moiety, and/ortherapeutic agent may be directly associated with one another, e.g., byone or more covalent bonds, or the association may be mediated by one ormore linkers. In some embodiments, a linker is a cleavable linker. Insome embodiments, a linker is an aliphatic or heteroaliphatic linker. Insome embodiments, the linker is a polyalkyl linker. In certainembodiments, the linker is a polyether linker. In certain embodiments,the linker is a polyethylene linker. In certain specific embodiments,the linker is a polyethylene glycol (PEG) linker.

In some embodiments, targeted particles in accordance with the presentinvention may be used to treat, alleviate, ameliorate, relieve, delayonset of, inhibit progression of, reduce severity of, and/or reduceincidence of one or more symptoms or features of a disease, disorder,and/or condition. In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles maybe used to treat cancer. In certain embodiments, inventive targetedparticles may be used to treat prostate cancer. The compositions,according to the method of the present invention, may be administeredusing any amount and any route of administration effective fortreatment.

In some embodiments, targeted particles of the present invention may beused to diagnose a disease, disorder, and/or condition. In someembodiments, inventive targeted particles may be used to diagnosecancer. In certain embodiments, inventive targeted particles may be usedto diagnose prostate cancer. In some embodiments, such methods ofdiagnosis may involve the use of inventive targeted particles tophysically detect and/or locate a tumor within the body of a subject. Insome embodiments, inventive targeted particles comprise particles whichhave intrinsically detectable properties (e.g. magnetic particles). Insome embodiments, inventive targeted particles comprise particles whichdo not have intrinsically detectable properties but are associated witha substance which is detectable (e.g. fluorescent or radioactivemoiety).

The present invention provides kits useful for carrying out variousaspects of the invention. In some embodiments, a kit may include, forexample, (i) a targeted particle comprising a particle, a targetingmoiety, and one or more particular therapeutic agents to be delivered;and (ii) instructions for administering the targeted particle to asubject in need thereof. In some embodiments, a kit may be providedwhich includes materials useful for identifying and/or screening fornovel targeting moieties. Such a kit may include, for example, (i) atargeted particle comprising a particle, a library of targetingmoieties, and one or more therapeutic agents to be delivered; (ii) atargeted particle that may serve as a positive control; and (iii) atargeted particle that may serve as a negative control.

This application refers to various issued patents, published patentapplications, journal articles, and other publications, all of which areincorporated herein by reference.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1: Synthesis of PLGA-b-PEG-COOH nanoparticles (NP), and associationof aptamer to nanoparticles. Docetaxel was encapsulated withinPLGA-b-PEG-COOH NP using the nanoprecipitation method. PLGA-PEGNP/Docetaxel was covalently associated with amine-terminated A10prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) aptamer (Apt) in the presenceof EDC.

FIG. 2: Effect of varying formulation parameters on nanoparticle size.(A) Varying solvent:water ratio (1:1, 1:2, 1:5, 1:10) while keepingPLGA-b-PEG polymer constant at 10 mg/ml. (B) Varying polymerconcentrations in organic phase (5, 10, 20, or 50 mg/ml) while keepingsolvent:water ratio constant at 1:2.

FIG. 3: Correlation of nanoparticle volumetric sizes with polymerconcentrations at constant solvent:water ratio.

FIG. 4: Effect of docetaxel loading on PLGA-b-PEG nanoparticlepolydispersity.

FIG. 5: PLGA-b-PEG NP size stability. (A) Effect of centrifugation vs.ultrafiltration on nanoparticle size (12000×g for 15 minutes vs. 3000×gfor 15 minutes). (B) Effect of sucrose prior to lyopholization onnanoparticle size, after storage and resuspension.

FIG. 6: Confirmation of nanoparticle-Apt association. A10 PSMA aptamer(Apt) was incubated with PLGA-b-PEG nanoparticles in the absence (−) orpresence (+) of EDC. Reactions were resolved on a 10% TBE-Urea PAGEdirectly or after washing to remove any unassociated Apt. Bandscorresponding to the A10 PSMA Apt and nanoparticle-Apt are indicated byarrows. Nucleic acid molecular weight marker (MW) is shown on left.

FIG. 7: Tumor targeting by PLGA-b-PEG nanoparticles and nanoparticle-Aptafter systemic administration (mean±SD; n=4; * P<0.002).

FIG. 8: Systemic biodistribution of (A) PLGA-b-PEG nanoparticles and (B)nanoparticle-Apt (mean±SD; n=4).

DEFINITIONS

Amino acid: As used herein, term “amino acid,” in its broadest sense,refers to any compound and/or substance that can be incorporated into apolypeptide chain. In some embodiments, an amino acid has the generalstructure H₂N—C(H)(R)—COOH. In some embodiments, an amino acid is anaturally-occurring amino acid. In some embodiments, an amino acid is asynthetic amino acid; in some embodiments, an amino acid is a D-aminoacid; in some embodiments, an amino acid is an L-amino acid. “Standardamino acid” or “natural amino acid” refers to any of the twenty standardL-amino acids commonly found in naturally occurring peptides.“Nonstandard amino acid” refers to any amino acid, other than thestandard amino acids, regardless of whether it is prepared syntheticallyor obtained from a natural source. As used herein, “non-natural aminoacid” encompasses chemically produced or modified amino acids, includingbut not limited to salts, amino acid derivatives (such as amides),and/or substitutions. Amino acids, including carboxy- and/oramino-terminal amino acids in peptides, can be modified by methylation,amidation, acetylation, and/or substitution with other chemical groupsthat can change the peptide's circulating half-life without adverselyaffecting their activity. Amino acids may participate in a disulfidebond. The term “amino acid” is used interchangeably with “amino acidresidue,” and may refer to a free amino acid and/or to an amino acidresidue of a peptide. It will be apparent from the context in which theterm is used whether it refers to a free amino acid or a residue of apeptide.

Animal: As used herein, the term “animal” refers to any member of theanimal kingdom. In some embodiments, “animal” refers to humans, at anystage of development. In some embodiments, “animal” refers to non-humananimals, at any stage of development. In certain embodiments, thenon-human animal is a mammal (e.g., a rodent, a mouse, a rat, a rabbit,a monkey, a dog, a cat, a sheep, cattle, a primate, and/or a pig). Insome embodiments, animals include, but are not limited to, mammals,birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and/or worms. In some embodiments, ananimal may be a transgenic animal, genetically-engineered animal, and/ora clone.

Antibody: As used herein, the term “antibody” refers to anyimmunoglobulin, whether natural or wholly or partially syntheticallyproduced. All derivatives thereof which maintain specific bindingability are also included in the term. The term also covers any proteinhaving a binding domain which is homologous or largely homologous to animmunoglobulin binding domain. Such proteins may be derived from naturalsources, or partly or wholly synthetically produced. An antibody may bemonoclonal or polyclonal. An antibody may be a member of anyimmunoglobulin class, including any of the human classes: IgG, IgM, IgA,IgD, and IgE. As used herein, the terms “antibody fragment” or“characteristic portion of an antibody” are used interchangeably andrefer to any derivative of an antibody which is less than full-length.In general, an antibody fragment retains at least a significant portionof the full-length antibody's specific binding ability. Examples ofantibody fragments include, but are not limited to, Fab, Fab′, F(ab′)2,scFv, Fv, dsFv diabody, and Fd fragments. An antibody fragment may beproduced by any means. For example, an antibody fragment may beenzymatically or chemically produced by fragmentation of an intactantibody and/or it may be recombinantly produced from a gene encodingthe partial antibody sequence. Alternatively or additionally, anantibody fragment may be wholly or partially synthetically produced. Anantibody fragment may optionally comprise a single chain antibodyfragment. Alternatively or additionally, an antibody fragment maycomprise multiple chains which are linked together, for example, bydisulfide linkages. An antibody fragment may optionally comprise amultimolecular complex. A functional antibody fragment will typicallycomprise at least about 50 amino acids and more typically will compriseat least about 200 amino acids.

Approximately: As used herein, the terms “approximately” or “about” inreference to a number are generally taken to include numbers that fallwithin a range of 5%, 10%, 15%, or 20% in either direction (greater thanor less than) of the number unless otherwise stated or otherwise evidentfrom the context (except where such number would be less than 0% orexceed 100% of a possible value).

Associated with: As used herein, the term “associated with” refers tothe state of two or more entities which are linked by a direct orindirect covalent or non-covalent interaction. In some embodiments, anassociation is covalent. In some embodiments, a covalent association ismediated by a linker moiety. In some embodiments, an association isnon-covalent (e.g. charge interactions, affinity interactions, metalcoordination, physical adsorption, host-guest interactions, hydrophobicinteractions, TT stacking interactions, hydrogen bonding interactions,van der Waals interactions, magnetic interactions, electrostaticinteractions, dipole-dipole interactions, etc.). For example, in someembodiments, an entity (e.g. targeting moiety or therapeutic agent to bedelivered) may be covalently associated with a particle. In someembodiments, an entity (e.g. targeting moiety or therapeutic agent to bedelivered) may be non-covalently associated with a particle, (e.g. theentity may be associated with the surface of, encapsulated within,surrounded by, and/or distributed throughout a polymeric matrix of aninventive particle).

Biocompatible: As used herein, the term “biocompatible” refers tosubstances that are not toxic to cells. In some embodiments, a substanceis considered to be “biocompatible” if its addition to cells in vitroresults in less than or equal to approximately 20% cell death. In someembodiments, a substance is considered to be “biocompatible” if itsaddition to cells in vivo does not induce inflammation and/or otheradverse effects in vivo.

Biodegradable: As used herein, the term “biodegradable” refers tosubstances that are degraded under physiological conditions. In someembodiments, a biodegradable substance is a substance that is brokendown by cellular machinery. In some embodiments, a biodegradablesubstance is a substance that is broken down by chemical processes.

Cell type: As used herein, the term “cell type” refers to a form of cellhaving a distinct set of morphological, biochemical, and/or functionalcharacteristics that define the cell type. One of skill in the art willrecognize that a cell type can be defined with varying levels ofspecificity. For example, prostate endothelial cells and circulatorysystem endothelial cells are distinct cell types, which can bedistinguished from one another but share certain features that arecharacteristic of the broader “endothelial” cell type of which both aremembers. Typically, cells of different types may be distinguished fromone another based on their differential expression of a variety of geneswhich are referred to in the art as “markers” of a particular cell typeor types (e.g., cell types of a particular lineage). A “cell typespecific marker” is a gene product or modified version thereof that isexpressed at a significantly greater level by one or more cell typesthan by all or most other cell types and whose expression ischaracteristic of that cell type. Many cell type specific markers arerecognized as such in the art. Similarly, a “tissue specific marker” isone that is expressed at a significantly greater level by cells of atype that is characteristic of a particular tissue than by cells thatare characteristic of most or all other tissues.

Characteristic portion: As used herein, the phrase a “characteristicportion” of a substance, in the broadest sense, is one that shares somedegree of sequence and/or structural identity and/or at least onefunctional characteristic with the relevant intact substance. Forexample, a “characteristic portion” of a polynucleotide is one thatcontains a continuous stretch of nucleotides, or a collection ofcontinuous stretches of nucleotides, that together are characteristic ofa polynucleotide. In some embodiments, each such continuous stretchgenerally will contain at least 2, 5, 10, 15, 20 or more nucleotides. Insome embodiments, the characteristic portion may be biologically active.

Gene: As used herein, the term “gene” has its meaning as understood inthe art. It will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the artthat the term “gene” may include gene regulatory sequences (e.g.,promoters, enhancers, etc.) and/or intron sequences. It will further beappreciated that definitions of gene include references to nucleic acidsthat do not encode proteins but rather encode RNA molecules (e.g.,functional RNA molecules, such as rRNAs and/or tRNAs).

Gene product or expression product: As used herein, the term “geneproduct” or “expression product” generally refers to an RNA transcribedfrom the gene (pre-and/or post-processing) or a polypeptide (pre- and/orpost-modification) encoded by an RNA transcribed from the gene.

Homology: As used herein, the term “homology” refers to to the overallrelatedness between polymeric molecules, e.g. between nucleic acidmolecules (e.g. DNA molecules and/or RNA molecules) and/or betweenpolypeptide molecules. In some embodiments, polymeric molecules areconsidered to be “homologous” to one another if their sequences are atleast 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%,90%, 95%, or 99% identical. In some embodiments, polymeric molecules areconsidered to be “homologous” to one another if their sequences are atleast 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%,90%, 95%, or 99% similar.

Identity: As used herein, the term “identity” refers to the overallrelatedness between polymeric molecules, e.g. between nucleic acidmolecules (e.g. DNA molecules and/or RNA molecules) and/or betweenpolypeptide molecules. Calculation of the percent identity of twonucleic acid sequences, for example, can be performed by aligning thetwo sequences for optimal comparison purposes (e.g., gaps can beintroduced in one or both of a first and a second nucleic acid sequencesfor optimal alignment and non-identical sequences can be disregarded forcomparison purposes). In certain embodiments, the length of a sequencealigned for comparison purposes is at least 30%, at least 40%, at least50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, at least95% or 100% of the length of the reference sequence. The nucleotides atcorresponding nucleotide positions are then compared. When a position inthe first sequence is occupied by the same nucleotide as thecorresponding position in the second sequence, then the molecules areidentical at that position. The percent identity between the twosequences is a function of the number of identical positions shared bythe sequences, taking into account the number of gaps, and the length ofeach gap, which needs to be introduced for optimal alignment of the twosequences. The comparison of sequences and determination of percentidentity between two sequences can be accomplished using a mathematicalalgorithm. For example, the percent identity between two nucleotidesequences can be determined using the algorithm of Meyers and Miller(CABIOS, 1989, 4: 11-17), which has been incorporated into the ALIGNprogram (version 2.0) using a PAM120 weight residue table, a gap lengthpenalty of 12 and a gap penalty of 4. The percent identity between twonucleotide sequences can, alternatively, be determined using the GAPprogram in the GCG software package using a NWSgapdna.CMP matrix.

In vitro: As used herein, the term “in vitro” refers to events thatoccur in an artificial environment, e.g., in a test tube or reactionvessel, in cell culture, etc., rather than within an organism (e.g.animal, plant, and/or microbe).

In vivo: As used herein, the term “in vivo” refers to events that occurwithin an organism (e.g. animal, plant, and/or microbe).

Nucleic acid: As used herein, the term “nucleic acid,” in its broadestsense, refers to any compound and/or substance that can be incorporatedinto an oligonucleotide chain. As used herein, the terms “nucleic acid”and “polynucleotide” can be used interchangeably. In some embodiments,“nucleic acid” encompasses RNA as well as single and/or double-strandedDNA and/or cDNA. Furthermore, the terms “nucleic acid,” “DNA,” “RNA,”and/or similar terms include nucleic acid analogs, i.e. analogs havingother than a phosphodiester backbone. For example, the so-called“peptide nucleic acids,” which are known in the art and have peptidebonds instead of phosphodiester bonds in the backbone, are consideredwithin the scope of the present invention. The term “nucleotide sequenceencoding an amino acid sequence” includes all nucleotide sequences thatare degenerate versions of each other and/or encode the same amino acidsequence. Nucleotide sequences that encode proteins and/or RNA mayinclude introns. Nucleic acids can be purified from natural sources,produced using recombinant expression systems and optionally purified,chemically synthesized, etc. Where appropriate, e.g., in the case ofchemically synthesized molecules, nucleic acids can comprise nucleosideanalogs such as analogs having chemically modified bases or sugars,backbone modifications, etc. The term “nucleic acid sequence” as usedherein can refer to the nucleic acid material itself and is notrestricted to the sequence information (e.g. the succession of letterschosen, for example, among the five base letters A, G, C, T, or U) thatbiochemically characterizes a specific nucleic acid, e.g., a DNA or RNAmolecule. A nucleic acid sequence is presented in the 5′ to 3′ directionunless otherwise indicated. The term “nucleic acid segment” is usedherein to refer to a nucleic acid sequence that is a portion of a longernucleic acid sequence. In some embodiments, a “nucleic acid” or“polynucleotide” comprises natural nucleosides (e.g. adenosine,thymidine, guanosine, cytidine, uridine, deoxyadenosine, deoxythymidine,deoxyguanosine, and deoxycytidine); nucleoside analogs (e.g.,2-aminoadenosine, 2-thiothymidine, inosine, pyrrolo-pyrimidine, 3-methyladenosine, 5-methylcytidine, C-5 propynyl-cytidine, C-5propynyl-uridine, 2-aminoadenosine, C5-bromouridine, C5-fluorouridine,C5-iodouridine, C5-propynyl-uridine, C5-propynyl-cytidine,C5-methylcytidine, 2-aminoadenosine, 7-deazaadenosine, 7-deazaguanosine,8-oxoadenosine, 8-oxoguanosine, O(6)-methylguanine, and 2-thiocytidine);chemically modified bases; biologically modified bases (e.g., methylatedbases); intercalated bases; modified sugars (e.g., 2′-fluororibose,ribose, 2′-deoxyribose, arabinose, and hexose); and/or modifiedphosphate groups (e.g., phosphorothioates and 5′-N-phosphoramiditelinkages).

Particle: As used herein, a “particle” refers to any entity having adiameter of less than 100 microns (μm). Typically, particles have alongest dimension (e.g. diameter) of 1000 nm or less. In someembodiments, particles have a diameter of 300 nm or less. In someembodiments, nanoparticles have a diameter of 200 nm or less. In someembodiments, nanoparticles have a diameter of 100 nm or less. Ingeneral, particles are greater in size than the renal excretion limit,but are small enough to avoid accumulation in the liver. In someembodiments, a population of particles may be relatively uniform interms of size, shape, and/or composition. In general, inventiveparticles are biodegradable and/or biocompatible. Inventive particlescan be solid or hollow and can comprise one or more layers. In someembodiments, particles are spheres, spheroids, flat, plate-shaped,cubes, cuboids, ovals, ellipses, cyllinders, cones, or pyramids. In someembodiments, particles can be a matrix of polymers. In some embodiments,the matrix is cross-linked. In some embodiments, formation of the matrixinvolves a cross-linking step. In some embodiments, the matrix is notsubstantially cross-linked. In some embodiments, formation of the matrixdoes not involve a cross-linking step. In some embodiments, particlescan be a non-polymeric particle (e.g. a metal particle, quantum dot,ceramic, inorganic material, bone, etc.). Inventive particles may bemicroparticles, nanoparticles, liposomes, and/or micelles. As usedherein, the term “nanoparticle” refers to any particle having a diameterof less than 1000 nm.

Pure: As used herein, a substance and/or entity is “pure” if it issubstantially free of other components. For example, a preparation thatcontains more than about 90% of a particular substance and/or entity istypically considered to be a pure preparation. In some embodiments, asubstance and/or entity is at least 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%,98%, or 99% pure.

Similarity: As used herein, the term “similarity” refers to the overallrelatedness between polymeric molecules, e.g. between nucleic acidmolecules (e.g. DNA molecules and/or RNA molecules) and/or betweenpolypeptide molecules. Calculation of percent similarity of polymericmolecules to one another can be performed in the same manner as acalculation of percent identity, except that calculation of percentsimilarity takes into account conservative substitutions as isunderstood in the art.

Small molecule: In general, a “small molecule” is understood in the artto be an organic molecule that is less than about 2000 g/mol in size. Insome embodiments, the small molecule is less than about 1500 g/mol orless than about 1000 g/mol. In some embodiments, the small molecule isless than about 800 g/mol or less than about 500 g/mol. In someembodiments, small molecules are non-polymeric and/or non-oligomeric. Insome embodiments, small molecules are not proteins, peptides, or aminoacids. In some embodiments, small molecules are not nucleic acids ornucleotides. In some embodiments, small molecules are not saccharides orpolysaccharides.

Specific binding: As used herein, the term “specific binding” refers tonon-covalent physical association of a first and a second moiety whereinthe association between the first and second moieties is at least 10times as strong, at least 50 times as strong, or at least 100 times asstrong as the association of either moiety with most or all othermoieties present in the environment in which binding occurs. Binding oftwo or more entities may be considered specific if the equilibriumdissociation constant, K_(d), is 10⁻³ M or less, 10⁻⁴ M or less, 10⁻⁵ Mor less, 10⁻⁶M or less, 10⁻⁷M or less, 10⁻⁸ M or less, 10⁻⁹ M or less,10⁻¹⁰ M or less, 10⁻¹¹ M or less, or 10⁻¹² M or less under theconditions employed, e.g., under physiological conditions such as thoseinside a cell or consistent with cell survival. In some embodiments,specific binding can be accomplished by a plurality of weakerinteractions (e.g. a plurality of individual interactions, wherein eachindividual interaction is characterized by a K_(d) of greater than 10⁻³M). In some embodiments, specific binding, which can be referred to as“molecular recognition,” is a saturable binding interaction between twoentities that is dependent on complementary orientation of functionalgroups on each entity. Examples of specific binding interactions includeaptamer-aptamer target interactions, antibody-antigen interactions,avidin-biotin interactions, ligand-receptor interactions, metal-chelateinteractions, hybridization between complementary nucleic acids, etc.

Subject: As used herein, the term “subject” or “patient” refers to anyorganism to which a composition of this invention may be administered,e.g., for experimental, diagnostic, and/or therapeutic purposes. Typicalsubjects include animals (e.g., mammals such as mice, rats, rabbits,non-human primates, and humans) and/or plants.

Suffering from: An individual who is “suffering from” a disease,disorder, and/or condition has been diagnosed with or displays one ormore symptoms of the disease, disorder, and/or condition.

Susceptible to: An individual who is “susceptible to” a disease,disorder, and/or condition has not been diagnosed with and/or may notexhibit symptoms of the disease, disorder, and/or condition. In someembodiments, an individual who is susceptible to a disease, disorder,and/or condition (for example, cancer) may be characterized by one ormore of the following: (1) a genetic mutation associated withdevelopment of the disease, disorder, and/or condition (e.g. a mutationin an oncogene-encoding gene); (2) a genetic polymorphism associatedwith development of the disease, disorder, and/or condition (e.g. apolymorphism in the promoter region of an oncogene-encoding gene); (3)increased and/or decreased expression and/or activity of a proteinassociated with the disease, disorder, and/or condition (e.g.overexpression of the EGF receptor or TGF-α); (4) habits and/orlifestyles associated with development of the disease, disorder, and/orcondition (e.g. heavy smoking or obesity); (5) a family history of thedisease, disorder, and/or condition (e.g. parent with cancer); (6)infection by a microbe associated with development of the disease,disorder, and/or condition (e.g. infection by a virus such as HPV). Insome embodiments, an individual who is susceptible to a disease,disorder, and/or condition will develop the disease, disorder, and/orcondition. In some embodiments, an individual who is susceptible to adisease, disorder, and/or condition will not develop the disease,disorder, and/or condition.

Target: As used herein, the term “target” or “marker” refers to anyentity that is capable of specifically binding to a particular targetingmoiety. In some embodiments, targets are specifically associated withone or more particular tissue types. In some embodiments, targets arespecifically associated with one or more particular cell types. In someembodiments, targets are specifically associated with one or moreparticular disease states. In some embodiments, targets are specificallyassociated with one or more particular developmental stages. Forexample, a cell type specific marker is typically expressed at levels atleast 2 fold greater in that cell type than in a reference population ofcells. In some embodiments, the cell type specific marker is present atlevels at least 3 fold, at least 4 fold, at least 5 fold, at least 6fold, at least 7 fold, at least 8 fold, at least 9 fold, at least 10fold, at least 50 fold, at least 100 fold, or at least 1000 fold greaterthan its average expression in a reference population. Detection ormeasurement of a cell type specific marker may make it possible todistinguish the cell type or types of interest from cells of many, most,or all other types. In some embodiments, a target can comprise aprotein, a carbohydrate, a lipid, and/or a nucleic acid, as describedherein.

Targeted: A substance is considered to be “targeted” for the purposesdescribed herein if it specifically binds to a targeting moiety. In someembodiments, a targeting moiety specifically binds to a target understringent conditions. An inventive targeted particle comprising atargeting moiety is considered to be “targeted” if the targeting moietyspecifically binds to a target, thereby delivering the entire targetedparticle composition to a specific organ, tissue, cell, and/orintracellular compartment.

Targeting moiety: As used herein, the term “targeting moiety” refers toany moiety that binds to a component associated with a cell. Such acomponent is referred to as a “target” or a “marker.” A targeting moietymay be a polypeptide, glycoprotein, nucleic acid, small molecule,carbohydrate, lipid, etc. In some embodiments, a targeting moiety is anantibody or characteristic portion thereof. In some embodiments, atargeting moiety is a receptor or characteristic portion thereof. Insome embodiments, a targeting moiety is a ligand or characteristicportion thereof. In some embodiments, a targeting moiety is a nucleicacid targeting moiety (e.g. an aptamer) that binds to a cell typespecific marker. In general, an aptamer is an oligonucleotide (e.g.,DNA, RNA, or an analog or derivative thereof) that specifically binds toa particular target, such as a polypeptide. In some embodiments, atargeting moiety is a small molecule.

Therapeutically effective amount: As used herein, the term“therapeutically effective amount” means an amount of a therapeuticand/or diagnostic agent (e.g., inventive targeted particle) that issufficient, when administered to a subject suffering from or susceptibleto a disease, disorder, and/or condition, to treat and/or diagnose thedisease, disorder, and/or condition.

Therapeutic agent: As used herein, the phrase “therapeutic agent” refersto any agent that, when administered to a subject, has a therapeuticand/or diagnostic effect and/or elicits a desired biological and/orpharmacological effect.

Treating: As used herein, the term “treating” refers to partially orcompletely alleviating, ameliorating, relieving, delaying onset of,inhibiting progression of, reducing severity of, and/or reducingincidence of one or more symptoms or features of a particular disease,disorder, and/or condition. For example, “treating” cancer may refer toinhibiting survival, growth, and/or spread of a tumor. Treatment may beadministered to a subject who does not exhibit signs of a disease,disorder, and/or condition and/or to a subject who exhibits only earlysigns of a disease, disorder, and/or condition for the purpose ofdecreasing the risk of developing pathology associated with the disease,disorder, and/or condition. In some embodiments, treatment comprisesdelivery of an inventive targeted particle to a subject.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides systems for selectively deliveringtherapeutic agents to particular organs, tissues, cells, and/orintracellular compartments. In certain embodiments, therapeutic agentsare to be specifically delivered to diseased tissues. In certainspecific embodiments, therapeutic agents are to be specificallydelivered to tumors (e.g. malignant tumors or benign tumors). Inspecific embodiments, therapeutic agents are to be delivered to tumorsassociated with cancer (e.g. prostate cancer).

The present invention provides targeted particles comprising a particle,one or more targeting moieties, and one or more therapeutic agents to bedelivered to an organ, tissue, cell, and/or intracellular compartment.In general, the organ, tissue, cell, and/or intracellular compartment isassociated with a target which is able to specifically bind to thetargeting moiety. The therapeutic agent is able to be delivered to theparticular targeted organ, tissue, cell, and/or intracellularcompartment once the target specifically binds to the targeting moiety.

Particles

In general, targeted particles of the present invention comprise aparticle. Any particle can be used in accordance with the presentinvention. In some embodiments, particles are biodegradable andbiocompatible. In general, a biocompatible substance is not toxic tocells. In some embodiments, a substance is considered to bebiocompatible if its addition to cells results in less than a certainthreshhold of cell death. In some embodiments, a substance is consideredto be biocompatible if its addition to cells does not induce adverseeffects. In general, a biodegradable substance is one that undergoesbreakdown under physiological conditions over the course of atherapeutically relevant time period (e.g., weeks, months, or years). Insome embodiments, a biodegradable substance is a substance that can bebroken down by cellular machinery. In some embodiments, a biodegradablesubstance is a substance that can be broken down by chemical processes.In some embodiments, a particle is a substance that is bothbiocompatible and biodegradable. In some embodiments, a particle is asubstance that is biocompatible, but not biodegradable. In someembodiments, a particle is a substance that is biodegradable, but notbiocompatible.

In some embodiments, a particle which is biocompatible and/orbiodegradable may be associated with a therapeutic agent that is notbiocompatible, is not biodegradable, or is neither biocompatible norbiodegradable (e.g. a cytotoxic agent). In some embodiments, a particlewhich is biocompatible and/or biodegradable may be associated with atherapeutic agent that is also biocompatible and/or biodegradable.

In general, a particle in accordance with the present invention is anyentity having a greatest dimension (e.g. diameter) of less than 100microns (μm). In some embodiments, inventive particles have a greatestdimension of less than 10 μm. In some embodiments, inventive particleshave a greatest dimension of less than 1000 nanometers (nm). In someembodiments, inventive particles have a greatest dimension of less than900 nm, 800 nm, 700 nm, 600 nm, 500 nm, 400 nm, 300 nm, 200 nm, or 100nm. Typically, inventive particles have a greatest dimension (e.g.,diameter) of 300 nm or less. In some embodiments, inventive particleshave a greatest dimension (e.g., diameter) of 250 nm or less. In someembodiments, inventive particles have a greatest dimension (e.g.,diameter) of 200 nm or less. In some embodiments, inventive particleshave a greatest dimension (e.g., diameter) of 150 nm or less. In someembodiments, inventive particles have a greatest dimension (e.g.,diameter) of 100 nm or less. Smaller particles, e.g., having a greatestdimension of 50 nm or less are used in some embodiments of theinvention. In some embodiments, inventive particles have a greatestdimension ranging between 25 nm and 200 nm.

In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 1000 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 750 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 500 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 450 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 400 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 350 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 300 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 275 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 250 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 225 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 200 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 175 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 150 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 125 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 100 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 75 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 50 nm.In some embodiments, particles have a diameter of approximately 25 nm.

In certain embodiments, particles are greater in size than the renalexcretion limit (e.g. particles having diameters of greater than 6 nm).In certain embodiments, particles are small enough to avoid clearance ofparticles from the bloodstream by the liver (e.g. particles havingdiameters of less than 1000 nm). In general, physiochemical features ofparticles should allow a targeted particle to circulate longer in plasmaby decreasing renal excretion and liver clearance.

It is often desirable to use a population of particles that isrelatively uniform in terms of size, shape, and/or composition so thateach particle has similar properties. For example, at least 80%, atleast 90%, or at least 95% of the particles may have a diameter orgreatest dimension that falls within 5%, 10%, or 20% of the averagediameter or greatest dimension. In some embodiments, a population ofparticles may be hererogeneous with respect to size, shape, and/orcomposition.

Zeta potential is a measurement of surface potential of a particle. Insome embodiments, particles have a zeta potential ranging between −50 mVand +50 mV. In some embodiments, particles have a zeta potential rangingbetween −25 mV and +25 mV. In some embodiments, particles have a zetapotential ranging between −10 mV and +10 mV. In some embodiments,particles have a zeta potential ranging between −5 mV and +5 mV. In someembodiments, particles have a zeta potential ranging between 0 mV and+50 mV. In some embodiments, particles have a zeta potential rangingbetween 0 mV and +25 mV. In some embodiments, particles have a zetapotential ranging between 0 mV and +10 mV. In some embodiments,particles have a zeta potential ranging between 0 mV and +5 mV. In someembodiments, particles have a zeta potential ranging between −50 mV and0 mV. In some embodiments, particles have a zeta potential rangingbetween −25 mV and 0 mV. In some embodiments, particles have a zetapotential ranging between −10 mV and 0 mV. In some embodiments,particles have a zeta potential ranging between −5 mV and 0 mV. In someembodiments, particles have a substantially neutral zeta potential (i.e.approximately 0 mV).

A variety of different particles can be used in accordance with thepresent invention. In some embodiments, particles are spheres orspheroids. In some embodiments, particles are spheres or spheroids. Insome embodiments, particles are flat or plate-shaped. In someembodiments, particles are cubes or cuboids. In some embodiments,particles are ovals or ellipses. In some embodiments, particles arecyllinders, cones, or pyramids.

In some embodiments, particles are microparticles (e.g. microspheres).In general, a “microparticle” refers to any particle having a diameterof less than 1000 μm. In some embodiments, particles are nanoparticles(e.g. nanospheres). In general, a “nanoparticle” refers to any particlehaving a diameter of less than 1000 nm. In some embodiments, particlesare picoparticles (e.g. picospheres). In general, a “picoparticle”refers to any particle having a diameter of less than 1 nm. In someembodiments, particles are liposomes. In some embodiments, particles aremicelles.

Particles can be solid or hollow and can comprise one or more layers(e.g., nanoshells, nanorings). In some embodiments, each layer has aunique composition and unique properties relative to the other layer(s).To give but one example, particles may have a core/shell structure,wherein the core is one layer and the shell is a second layer. Particlesmay comprise a plurality of different layers. In some embodiments, onelayer may be substantially cross-linked, a second layer is notsubstantially cross-linked, and so forth. In some embodiments, one, afew, or all of the different layers may comprise one or more therapeuticagents to be delivered. In some embodiments, one layer comprises atherapeutic agent to be delivered, a second layer does not comprise atherapeutic agent to be delivered, and so forth. In some embodiments,each individual layer comprises a different therapeutic agent or set oftherapeutic agents to be delivered.

In certain embodiments of the invention, a particle is porous, by whichis meant that the particle contains holes or channels, which aretypically small compared with the size of a particle. For example aparticle may be a porous silica particle, e.g., a mesoporous silicananoparticle or may have a coating of mesoporous silica (Lin et al.,2005, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 17:4570). Particles may have pores ranging fromabout 1 nm to about 50 nm in diameter, e.g., between about 1 and 20 nmin diameter. Between about 10% and 95% of the volume of a particle mayconsist of voids within the pores or channels.

Particles may have a coating layer. Use of a biocompatible coating layercan be advantageous, e.g., if the particles contain materials that aretoxic to cells. Suitable coating materials include, but are not limitedto, natural proteins such as bovine serum albumin (BSA), biocompaticlehydrophilic polymers such as polyethylene glycol (PEG) or a PEGderivative, phospholipid-(PEG), silica, lipids, polymers, carbohydratessuch as dextran, other nanoparticles that can be associated withinventive nanoparticles etc. Coatings may be applied or assembled in avariety of ways such as by dipping, using a layer-by-layer technique, byself-assembly, conjugation, etc. Self-assembly refers to a process ofspontaneous assembly of a higher order structure that relies on thenatural attraction of the components of the higher order structure(e.g., molecules) for each other. It typically occurs through randommovements of the molecules and formation of bonds based on size, shape,composition, or chemical properties.

In some embodiments, particles may optionally comprise one or moredispersion media, surfactants, or release-retarding ingredients. In someembodiments, particles may optionally comprise one or more plasticizersor additives.

Particles Comprising a Polymeric Matrix

In some embodiments, particles can comprise a matrix of polymers. Insome embodiments, a therapeutic agent and/or targeting moiety can becovalently associated with the surface of a polymeric matrix. In someembodiments, covalent association is mediated by a linker. In someembodiments, a therapeutic agent and/or targeting moiety can benon-covalently associated with the surface of a polymeric matrix. Insome embodiments, a therapeutic agent and/or targeting moiety can beassociated with the surface of, encapsulated within, surrounded by,and/or dispersed throughout a polymeric matrix.

A wide variety of polymers and methods for forming particles therefromare known in the art of drug delivery. In some embodiments of theinvention, the matrix of a particle comprises one or more polymers. Anypolymer may be used in accordance with the present invention. Polymersmay be natural or unnatural (synthetic) polymers. Polymers may behomopolymers or copolymers comprising two or more monomers. In terms ofsequence, copolymers may be random, block, or comprise a combination ofrandom and block sequences. Typically, polymers in accordance with thepresent invention are organic polymers.

Examples of polymers include polyethylenes, polycarbonates (e.g.poly(1,3-dioxan-2one)), polyanhydrides (e.g. poly(sebacic anhydride)),polyhydroxyacids (e.g. poly(β-hydroxyalkanoate)), polypropylfumerates,polycaprolactones, polyamides (e.g. polycaprolactam), polyacetals,polyethers, polyesters (e.g. polylactide, polyglycolide),poly(orthoesters), polycyanoacrylates, polyvinyl alcohols,polyurethanes, polyphosphazenes, polyacrylates, polymethacrylates,polyureas, polystyrenes, and polyamines. In some embodiments, polymersin accordance with the present invention include polymers which havebeen approved for use in humans by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration(FDA) under 21 C.F.R. §177.2600, including but not limited to polyesters(e.g. polylactic acid, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid), polycaprolactone,polyvalerolactone, poly(1,3-dioxan-2one)); polyanhydrides (e.g.poly(sebacic anhydride)); polyethers (e.g., polyethylene glycol);polyurethanes; polymethacrylates; polyacrylates; and polycyanoacrylates.

In some embodiments, polymers can be hydrophilic. For example, polymersmay comprise anionic groups (e.g. phosphate group, sulphate group,carboxylate group); cationic groups (e.g. quaternary amine group); orpolar groups (e.g. hydroxyl group, thiol group, amine group).

In some embodiments, polymers may be modified with one or more moietiesand/or functional groups. Any moiety or functional group can be used inaccordance with the present invention. In some embodiments, polymers maybe modified with polyethylene glycol (PEG), with a carbohydrate, and/orwith acyclic polyacetals derived from polysaccharides (Papisov, 2001,ACS Symposium Series, 786:301).

In some embodiments, may be modified with a lipid or fatty acid group,properties of which are described in further detail below. In someembodiments, a fatty acid group may be one or more of butyric, caproic,caprylic, capric, lauric, myristic, palmitic, stearic, arachidic,behenic, or lignoceric acid. In some embodiments, a fatty acid group maybe one or more of palmitoleic, oleic, vaccenic, linoleic,alpha-linoleic, gamma-linoleic, arachidonic, gadoleic, arachidonic,eicosapentaenoic, docosahexaenoic, or erucic acid.

In some embodiments, polymers may be polyesters, including copolymerscomprising lactic acid and glycolic acid units, such as poly(lacticacid-co-glycolic acid) and poly(lactide-co-glycolide), collectivelyreferred to herein as “PLGA”; and homopolymers comprising glycolic acidunits, referred to herein as “PGA,” and lactic acid units, such aspoly-L-lactic acid, poly-D-lactic acid, poly-D,L-lactic acid,poly-L-lactide, poly-D-lactide, and poly-D,L-lactide, collectivelyreferred to herein as “PLA.” In some embodiments, exemplary polyestersinclude, for example, polyhydroxyacids; PEGylated polymers andcopolymers of lactide and glycolide (e.g. PEGylated PLA, PEGylated PGA,PEGylated PLGA, and derivatives thereof. In some embodiments, polyestersinclude, for example, polyanhydrides, poly(ortho ester) PEGylatedpoly(ortho ester), poly(caprolactone), PEGylated poly(caprolactone),polylysine, PEGylated polylysine, poly(ethylene imine), PEGylatedpoly(ethylene imine), poly(L-lactide-co-L-lysine), poly(serine ester),poly(4-hydroxy-L-proline ester), poly[α-(4-aminobutyl)-L-glycolic acid],and derivatives thereof.

In some embodiments, a polymer may be PLGA. PLGA is a biocompatible andbiodegradable co-polymer of lactic acid and glycolic acid, and variousforms of PLGA are characterized by the ratio of lactic acid:glycolicacid. Lactic acid can be L-lactic acid, D-lactic acid, or D,L-lacticacid. The degradation rate of PLGA can be adjusted by altering thelactic acid:glycolic acid ratio. In some embodiments, PLGA to be used inaccordance with the present invention is characterized by a lacticacid:glycolic acid ratio of approximately 85:15, approximately 75:25,approximately 60:40, approximately 50:50, approximately 40:60,approximately 25:75, or approximately 15:85.

In some embodiments, polymers may be one or more acrylic polymers. Incertain embodiments, acrylic polymers include, for example, acrylic acidand methacrylic acid copolymers, methyl methacrylate copolymers,ethoxyethyl methacrylates, cyanoethyl methacrylate, aminoalkylmethacrylate copolymer, poly(acrylic acid), poly(methacrylic acid),methacrylic acid alkylamide copolymer, poly(methyl methacrylate),poly(methacrylic acid anhydride), methyl methacrylate, polymethacrylate,poly(methyl methacrylate) copolymer, polyacrylamide, aminoalkylmethacrylate copolymer, glycidyl methacrylate copolymers,polycyanoacrylates, and combinations comprising one or more of theforegoing polymers. The acrylic polymer may comprise fully-polymerizedcopolymers of acrylic and methacrylic acid esters with a low content ofquaternary ammonium groups.

In some embodiments, polymers can be cationic polymers. In general,cationic polymers are able to condense and/or protect negatively chargedstrands of nucleic acids (e.g. DNA, RNA, or derivatives thereof).Amine-containing polymers such as poly(lysine) (Zauner et al., 1998,Adv. Drug Del. Rev., 30:97; and Kabanov et al., 1995, BioconjugateChem., 6:7), poly(ethylene imine) (PEI; Boussif et al., 1995, Proc.Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 1995, 92:7297), and poly(amidoamine) dendrimers(Kukowska-Latallo et al., 1996, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 93:4897;Tang et al., 1996, Bioconjugate Chem., 7:703; and Haensler et al., 1993,Bioconjugate Chem., 4:372) are positively-charged at physiological pH,form ion pairs with nucleic acids, and mediate transfection in a varietyof cell lines.

In some embodiments, polymers can be degradable polyesters bearingcationic side chains (Putnam et al., 1999, Macromolecules, 32:3658;Barrera et al., 1993, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 115:11010; Kwon et al., 1989,Macromolecules, 22:3250; Lim et al., 1999, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 121:5633;and Zhou et al., 1990, Macromolecules, 23:3399). Examples of thesepolyesters include poly(L-lactide-co-L-lysine) (Barrera et al., 1993, J.Am. Chem. Soc., 115:11010), poly(serine ester) (Zhou et al., 1990,Macromolecules, 23:3399), poly(4-hydroxy-L-proline ester) (Putnam etal., 1999, Macromolecules, 32:3658; and Lim et al., 1999, J. Am. Chem.Soc., 121:5633). Poly(4-hydroxy-L-proline ester) was recentlydemonstrated to condense plasmid DNA through electrostatic interactions,and to mediate gene transfer (Putnam et al., 1999, Macromolecules,32:3658; and Lim et al., 1999, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 121:5633). These newpolymers are less toxic than poly(lysine) and PEI, and they degrade intonon-toxic metabolites.

In some embodiments, a polymer in accordance with the present inventionmay be a carbohydrate, properties of which are described in furtherdetail below. In some embodiments, a carbohydrate may be apolysaccharide comprising simple sugars (or their derivatives) connectedby glycosidic bonds, as known in the art. In some embodiments, acarbohydrate may be one or more of pullulan, cellulose, microcrystallinecellulose, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, hydroxycellulose,methylcellulose, dextran, cyclodextran, glycogen, starch,hydroxyethylstarch, carageenan, glycon, amylose, chitosan,N,O-carboxylmethylchitosan, algin and alginic acid, starch, chitin,heparin, konjac, glucommannan, pustulan, heparin, hyaluronic acid,curdlan, and xanthan.

In some embodiments, a polymer in accordance with the present inventionmay be a protein or peptide, properties of which are described infurther detail below. Exemplary proteins that may be used in accordancewith the present invention include, but are not limited to, albumin,collagen, a poly(amino acid) (e.g. polylysine), an antibody, etc.

In some embodiments, a polymer in accordance with the present inventionmay be a nucleic acid (i.e. polynucleotide), properties of which aredescribed in further detail below. Exemplary polynucleotides that may beused in accordance with the present invention include, but are notlimited to, DNA, RNA, etc.

The properties of these and other polymers and methods for preparingthem are well known in the art (see, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos.6,123,727; 5,804,178; 5,770,417; 5,736,372; 5,716,404; 6,095,148;5,837,752; 5,902,599; 5,696,175; 5,514,378; 5,512,600; 5,399,665;5,019,379; 5,010,167; 4,806,621; 4,638,045; and 4,946,929; Wang et al.,2001, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 123:9480; Lim et al., 2001, J. Am. Chem. Soc.,123:2460; Langer, 2000, Am. Chem. Res., 33:94; Langer, 1999, J. Control.Release, 62:7; and Uhrich et al., 1999, Chem. Rev., 99:3181). Moregenerally, a variety of methods for synthesizing suitable polymers aredescribed in Concise Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and PolymericAmines and Ammonium Salts, Ed. by Goethals, Pergamon Press, 1980;Principles of Polymerization by Odian, John Wiley & Sons, FourthEdition, 2004; Contemporary Polymer Chemistry by Allcock et al.,Prentice-Hall, 1981; Deming et al., 1997, Nature, 390:386; and in U.S.Pat. Nos. 6,506,577, 6,632,922, 6,686,446, and 6,818,732.

In some embodiments, polymers can be linear or branched polymers. Insome embodiments, polymers can be dendrimers. In some embodiments,polymers can be substantially cross-linked to one another. In someembodiments, polymers can be substantially free of cross-links. In someembodiments, polymers can be used in accordance with the presentinvention without undergoing a cross-linking step.

It is further to be understood that inventive targeted particles maycomprise block copolymers, graft copolymers, blends, mixtures, and/oradducts of any of the foregoing and other polymers.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that the polymers listed hereinrepresent an exemplary, not comprehensive, list of polymers that can beof use in accordance with the present invention.

Non-Polymeric Particles

In some embodiments, particles can be non-polymeric particles (e.g.metal particles, quantum dots, ceramic particles, polymers comprisinginorganic materials, bone particles, viral particles, etc.). In someembodiments, a therapeutic agent to be delivered can be associated withthe surface of such a non-polymeric particle. In some embodiments, anon-polymeric particle is an aggregate of non-polymeric components, suchas an aggregate of metal atoms (e.g. gold atoms). In some embodiments, atherapeutic agent to be delivered can be associated with the surface ofand/or encapsulated within, surrounded by, and/or dispersed throughoutan aggregate of non-polymeric components.

In certain embodiments of the invention, non-polymeric particlescomprise gradient or homogeneous alloys. In certain embodiments of theinvention, particles are composite particles made of two or morematerials, of which one, more than one, or all of the materials possessan optically or magnetically detectable property, as discussed infurther detail below.

In certain embodiments of the invention, particles comprise silica(SiO₂). For example, a particle may consist at least in part of silica,e.g., it may consist essentially of silica or may have an optionalcoating layer composed of a different material. In some embodiments, aparticle has a silica core and an outside layer composed of one or moreother materials. In some embodiments, a particle has an outer layer ofsilica and a core composed of one or more other materials. The amount ofsilica in the particle, or in a core or coating layer comprising silica,can range from approximately 5% to 100% by mass, volume, or number ofatoms, or can assume any value or range between 5% and 100%.

Preparation of Particles

Particles (e.g. nanoparticles, microparticles) may be prepared using anymethod known in the art. For example, particulate formulations can beformed by methods as nanoprecipitation, flow focusing using fluidicchannels, spray drying, single and double emulsion solvent evaporation,solvent extraction, phase separation, milling, microemulsion procedures,microfabrication, nanofabrication, sacrificial layers, simple andcomplex coacervation, and other methods well known to those of ordinaryskill in the art. Alternatively or additionally, aqueous and organicsolvent syntheses for monodisperse semiconductor, conductive, magnetic,organic, and other nanoparticles have been described (Pellegrino et al.,2005, Small, 1:48; Murray et al., 2000, Ann. Rev. Mat. Sci., 30:545; andTrindade et al., 2001, Chem. Mat., 13:3843).

In certain embodiments, particles are prepared by the nanoprecipitationprocess or spray drying. Conditions used in preparing particles may bealtered to yield particles of a desired size or property (e.g.,hydrophobicity, hydrophilicity, external morphology, “stickiness,”shape, etc.). The method of preparing the particle and the conditions(e.g., solvent, temperature, concentration, air flow rate, etc.) usedmay depend on the therapeutic agent to be delivered and/or thecomposition of the polymer matrix.

Methods for making microparticles for delivery of encapsulated agentsare described in the literature (see, e.g., Doubrow, Ed., “Microcapsulesand Nanoparticles in Medicine and Pharmacy,” CRC Press, Boca Raton,1992; Mathiowitz et al., 1987, J. Control. Release, 5:13; Mathiowitz etal., 1987, Reactive Polymers, 6:275; and Mathiowitz et al., 1988, J.Appl. Polymer Sci., 35:755).

If particles prepared by any of the above methods have a size rangeoutside of the desired range, particles can be sized, for example, usinga sieve.

Surfactants

In some embodiments, particles may optionally comprise one or moresurfactants. In some embodiments, a surfactant can promote theproduction of particles with increased stability, improved uniformity,or increased viscosity. Surfactants can be particularly useful inembodiments that utilize two or more dispersion media. The percent ofsurfactant in particles can range from 0% to 99% by weight, from 10% to99% by weight, from 25% to 99% by weight, from 50% to 99% by weight, orfrom 75% to 99% by weight. In some embodiments, the percent ofsurfactant in particles can range from 0% to 75% by weight, from 0% to50% by weight, from 0% to 25% by weight, or from 0% to 10% by weight. Insome embodiments, the percent of surfactant in particles can beapproximately 1% by weight, approximately 2% by weight, approximately 3%by weight, approximately 4% by weight, approximately 5% by weight,approximately 10% by weight, approximately 15% by weight, approximately20% by weight, approximately 25% by weight, or approximately 30% byweight.

Any surfactant known in the art is suitable for use in making particlesin accordance with the present invention. Such surfactants include, butare not limited to, phosphoglycerides; phosphatidylcholines; dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC); dioleylphosphatidyl ethanolamine (DOPE);dioleyloxypropyltriethylammonium (DOTMA); dioleoylphosphatidylcholine;cholesterol; cholesterol ester; diacylglycerol; diacylglycerolsuccinate;diphosphatidyl glycerol (DPPG); hexanedecanol; fatty alcohols such aspolyethylene glycol (PEG); polyoxyethylene-9-lauryl ether; a surfaceactive fatty acid, such as palmitic acid or oleic acid; fatty acids;fatty acid monoglycerides; fatty acid diglycerides; fatty acid amides;sorbitan trioleate (Span 85) glycocholate; sorbitan monolaurate (Span20); polysorbate 20 (Tween-20); polysorbate 60 (Tween-60); polysorbate65 (Tween-65); polysorbate 80 (Tween-80); polysorbate 85 (Tween-85);polyoxyethylene monostearate; surfactin; a poloxomer; a sorbitan fattyacid ester such as sorbitan trioleate; lecithin; lysolecithin;phosphatidylserine; phosphatidylinositol; sphingomyelin;phosphatidylethanolamine (cephalin); cardiolipin; phosphatidic acid;cerebrosides; dicetylphosphate; dipalmitoylphosphatidylglycerol;stearylamine; dodecylamine; hexadecyl-amine; acetyl palmitate; glycerolricinoleate; hexadecyl sterate; isopropyl myristate; tyloxapol;poly(ethylene glycol)5000-phosphatidylethanolamine; poly(ethyleneglycol)400-monostearate; phospholipids; synthetic and/or naturaldetergents having high surfactant properties; deoxycholates;cyclodextrins; chaotropic salts; ion pairing agents; and combinationsthereof. The surfactant component may be a mixture of differentsurfactants. These surfactants may be extracted and purified from anatural source or may be prepared synthetically in a laboratory. Incertain specific embodiments, surfactants are commercially available.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that this is an exemplary, notcomprehensive, list of substances with surfactant activity. Anysurfactant may be used in the production of particles to be used inaccordance with the present invention.

Lipids

In some embodiments, particles may optionally comprise one or morelipids. The percent of lipid in particles can range from 0% to 99% byweight, from 10% to 99% by weight, from 25% to 99% by weight, from 50%to 99% by weight, or from 75% to 99% by weight. In some embodiments, thepercent of lipid in particles can range from 0% to 75% by weight, from0% to 50% by weight, from 0% to 25% by weight, or from 0% to 10% byweight. In some embodiments, the percent of lipid in particles can beapproximately 1% by weight, approximately 2% by weight, approximately 3%by weight, approximately 4% by weight, approximately 5% by weight,approximately 10% by weight, approximately 15% by weight, approximately20% by weight, approximately 25% by weight, or approximately 30% byweight.

In some embodiments, lipids are oils. In general, any oil known in theart can be included in particles. In some embodiments, an oil maycomprise one or more fatty acid groups or salts thereof. In someembodiments, a fatty acid group may comprise digestible, long chain(e.g., C₈-C₅₀), substituted or unsubstituted hydrocarbons. In someembodiments, a fatty acid group may be a C₁₀-C₂₀ fatty acid or saltthereof. In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may be a C₁₅-C₂₀ fattyacid or salt thereof. In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may be aC₁₅-C₂₅ fatty acid or salt thereof. In some embodiments, a fatty acidgroup may be unsaturated. In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may bemonounsaturated. In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may bepolyunsaturated. In some embodiments, a double bond of an unsaturatedfatty acid group may be in the cis conformation. In some embodiments, adouble bond of an unsaturated fatty acid may be in the transconformation.

In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may be one or more of butyric,caproic, caprylic, capric, lauric, myristic, palmitic, stearic,arachidic, behenic, or lignoceric acid. In some embodiments, a fattyacid group may be one or more of palmitoleic, oleic, vaccenic, linoleic,alpha-linolenic, gamma-linoleic, arachidonic, gadoleic, arachidonic,eicosapentaenoic, docosahexaenoic, or erucic acid.

In some embodiments, the oil is a liquid triglyceride.

Suitable oils for use with the present invention include, but are notlimited to, almond, apricot kernel, avocado, babassu, bergamot, blackcurrent seed, borage, cade, camomile, canola, caraway, carnauba, castor,cinnamon, cocoa butter, coconut, cod liver, coffee, corn, cotton seed,emu, eucalyptus, evening primrose, fish, flaxseed, geraniol, gourd,grape seed, hazel nut, hyssop, jojoba, kukui nut, lavandin, lavender,lemon, litsea cubeba, macademia nut, mallow, mango seed, meadowfoamseed, mink, nutmeg, olive, orange, orange roughy, palm, palm kernel,peach kernel, peanut, poppy seed, pumpkin seed, rapeseed, rice bran,rosemary, safflower, sandalwood, sasquana, savoury, sea buckthorn,sesame, shea butter, silicone, soybean, sunflower, tea tree, thistle,tsubaki, vetiver, walnut, and wheat germ oils, and combinations thereof.Suitable oils for use with the present invention include, but are notlimited to, butyl stearate, caprylic triglyceride, capric triglyceride,cyclomethicone, diethyl sebacate, dimethicone 360, isopropyl myristate,mineral oil, octyldodecanol, oleyl alcohol, silicone oil, andcombinations thereof.

In some embodiments, a lipid is a hormone (e.g. estrogen, testosterone),steroid (e.g., cholesterol, bile acid), vitamin (e.g. vitamin E),phospholipid (e.g. phosphatidyl choline), sphingolipid (e.g. ceramides),or lipoprotein (e.g. apolipoprotein).

Carbohydrates

In some embodiments, particles may optionally comprise one or morecarbohydrates. The percent of carbohydrate in particles can range from0% to 99% by weight, from 10% to 99% by weight, from 25% to 99% byweight, from 50% to 99% by weight, or from 75% to 99% by weight. In someembodiments, the percent of carbohydrate in particles can range from 0%to 75% by weight, from 0% to 50% by weight, from 0% to 25% by weight, orfrom 0% to 10% by weight. In some embodiments, the percent ofcarbohydrate in particles can be approximately 1% by weight,approximately 2% by weight, approximately 3% by weight, approximately 4%by weight, approximately 5% by weight, approximately 10% by weight,approximately 15% by weight, approximately 20% by weight, approximately25% by weight, or approximately 30% by weight.

Carbohydrates may be natural or synthetic. A carbohydrate may be aderivatized natural carbohydrate. In certain embodiments, a carbohydrateis a monosaccharide, including but not limited to glucose, fructose,galactose, ribose, lactose, sucrose, maltose, trehalose, cellbiose,mannose, xylose, arabinose, glucoronic acid, galactoronic acid,mannuronic acid, glucosamine, galatosamine, and neuramic acid. Incertain embodiments, a carbohydrate is a disaccharide, including but notlimited to lactose, sucrose, maltose, trehalose, and cellobiose. Incertain embodiments, a carbohydrate is a polysaccharide, including butnot limited to pullulan, cellulose, microcrystalline cellulose,hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), hydroxycellulose (HC),methylcellulose (MC), dextran, cyclodextran, glycogen, starch,hydroxyethylstarch, carageenan, glycon, amylose, chitosan,N,O-carboxylmethylchitosan, algin and alginic acid, starch, chitin,heparin, konjac, glucommannan, pustulan, heparin, hyaluronic acid,curdlan, and xanthan. In certain embodiments, the carbohydrate is asugar alcohol, including but not limited to mannitol, sorbitol, xylitol,erythritol, maltitol, and lactitol.

Targeting Moieties

In general, inventive targeting particles comprise one or more targetingmoieties. In certain embodiments of the invention, particles areassociated with one or more targeting moieties. A targeting moiety isany moiety that binds to a component associated with an organ, tissue,cell, extracellular matrix, and/or intracellular compartment. In someembodiments, such a component is referred to as a “target” or a“marker,” and these are discussed in further detail below.

A targeting moiety may be a nucleic acid, polypeptide, glycoprotein,carbohydrate, lipid, etc. For example, a targeting moiety can be anucleic acid targeting moiety (e.g. an aptamer) that binds to a celltype specific marker. In general, an aptamer is an oligonucleotide(e.g., DNA, RNA, or an analog or derivative thereof) that binds to aparticular target, such as a polypeptide. In some embodiments, atargeting moiety may be a naturally occurring or synthetic ligand for acell surface receptor, e.g., a growth factor, hormone, LDL, transferrin,etc. A targeting moiety can be an antibody, which term is intended toinclude antibody fragments, characteristic portions of antibodies,single chain antibodies, etc. Synthetic binding proteins such asaffibodies, etc., can be used. Peptide targeting moieties can beidentified, e.g., using procedures such as phage display. This widelyused technique has been used to identify cell specific ligands for avariety of different cell types.

In some embodiments, targeting moieties bind to an organ, tissue, cell,extracellular matrix component, and/or intracellular compartment that isassociated with a specific developmental stage or a specific diseasestate. In some embodiments, a target is an antigen on the surface of acell, such as a cell surface receptor, an integrin, a transmembraneprotein, an ion channel, and/or a membrane transport protein. In someembodiments, a target is an intracellular protein. In some embodiments,a target is a soluble protein, such as immunoglobulin. In certainspecific embodiments, a target is a tumor marker. In some embodiments, atumor marker is an antigen that is present in a tumor that is notpresent in normal tissue. In some embodiments, a tumor marker is anantigen that is more prevalent in a tumor than in normal tissue. In someembodiments, a tumor marker is an antigen that is more prevalent inmalignant cancer cells than in normal cells.

In some embodiments, a target is preferentially expressed in tumortissues versus normal tissues. For example, when compared withexpression in normal tissues, expression of prostate specific membraneantigen (PSMA) is at least 10-fold overexpressed in malignant prostaterelative to normal tissue, and the level of PSMA expression is furtherup-regulated as the disease progresses into metastatic phases (Silver etal., 1997, Clin. Cancer Res., 3:81).

In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles comprise less than 50%by weight, less than 40% by weight, less than 30% by weight, less than20% by weight, less than 15% by weight, less than 10% by weight, lessthan 5% by weight, less than 1% by weight, or less than 0.5% by weightof the targeting moiety.

In some embodiments, targeting moieties are covalently associated with aparticle. In some embodiments, covalent association is mediated by alinker. In some embodiments, targeting moieties are not covalentlyassociated with a particle. For example, targeting moieties may beassociated with the surface of, encapsulated within, surrounded by,and/or distributed throughout the polymeric matrix of an inventiveparticle. Association of targeting moieties with particles is discussedin further detail below, in the section entitled “Production of TargetedParticles.”

Nucleic Acid Targeting Moieties

As used herein, a “nucleic acid targeting moiety” is a nucleic acid thatbinds selectively to a target. In some embodiments, a nucleic acidtargeting moiety is a nucleic acid aptamer. An aptamer is usually apolynucleotide that binds to a specific target structure that isassociated with a particular organ, tissue, cell, extracellular matrixcomponent, and/or intracellular compartment. In general, the targetingfunction of the aptamer is based on the three-dimensional structure ofthe aptamer. In some embodiments, binding of an aptamer to a target istypically mediated by the interaction between the two- and/orthree-dimensional structures of both the aptamer and the target. In someembodiments, binding of an aptamer to a target is not solely based onthe primary sequence of the aptamer, but depends on thethree-dimensional structure(s) of the aptamer and/or target. In someembodiments, aptamers bind to their targets via complementaryWatson-Crick base pairing which is interrupted by structures (e.g.hairpin loops) that disrupt base pairing.

One of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that any aptamer that iscapable of specifically binding to a target can be used in accordancewith the present invention. In some embodiments, aptamers to be used inaccordance with the present invention may target cancer-associatedtargets. In some embodiments, aptamers to be used in accordance with thepresent invention may target tumor markers.

In certain embodiments, aptamers to be used in accordance with thepresent invention may target prostate cancer associated antigens, suchas PSMA. Exemplary PSMA-targeting aptamers to be used in accordance withthe present invention include, but are not limited to, the A10 aptamer,having a nucleotide sequence of5′-GGGAGGACGAUGCGGAUCAGCCAUGUUUACGUCACUCCUUGUCAAUCCUCAUCGGCAGACGACUCGCCCGA-3′ (SEQ ID NO.: 1) (Lupold et al., 2002,Cancer Res., 62:4029), the A9 aptamer, having nucleotide sequence of5′-GGGAGGACGAUGCGGACCGAAAAAGACCUGACUUCUAUACUAAGUCUACGUUCCCAGACGACUCGCCCGA-3′ (SEQ ID NO.: 2) (Lupold et al., 2002, CancerRes., 62:4029; and Chu et al., 2006, Nuc. Acid Res., 34:e73),derivatives thereof, and/or characteristic portions thereof.

In some embodiments, a nucleotide sequence that is homologous to anucleic acid targeting moiety may be used in accordance with the presentinvention. In some embodiments, a nucleotide sequence is considered tobe “homologous” to a nucleic acid targeting moiety if it comprises fewerthan 30, 25, 20, 15, 10, 5, 4, 3, 2, or 1 nucleic acid substitutionsrelative to the aptamer. In some embodiments, a nucleotide sequence isconsidered to be “homologous” to a nucleic acid targeting moiety iftheir sequences are at least 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%,65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, or 99% identical. In someembodiments, a nucleic acid sequence is considered to be “homologous” toa nucleic acid targeting moiety if their sequences are at least 25%,30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, or99% similar.

Nucleic acids of the present invention (including nucleic acid targetingmoieties and/or functional RNAs to be delivered, e.g., RNAi agents,ribozymes, tRNAs, etc., described in further detail below) may beprepared according to any available technique including, but not limitedto chemical synthesis, enzymatic synthesis, enzymatic or chemicalcleavage of a longer precursor, etc. Methods of synthesizing RNAs areknown in the art (see, e.g., Gait, M. J. (ed.) Oligonucleotidesynthesis: a practical approach, Oxford [Oxfordshire], Washington, D.C.:IRL Press, 1984; and Herdewijn, P. (ed.) Oligonucleotide synthesis:methods and applications, Methods in molecular biology, v. 288 (Clifton,N.J.) Totowa, N.J.: Humana Press, 2005).

The nucleic acid that forms the nucleic acid targeting moiety maycomprise naturally occurring nucleosides, modified nucleosides,naturally occurring nucleosides with hydrocarbon linkers (e.g., analkylene) or a polyether linker (e.g., a PEG linker) inserted betweenone or more nucleosides, modified nucleosides with hydrocarbon or PEGlinkers inserted between one or more nucleosides, or a combination ofthereof. In some embodiments, nucleotides or modified nucleotides of thenucleic acid targeting moiety can be replaced with a hydrocarbon linkeror a polyether linker provided that the binding affinity and selectivityof the nucleic acid targeting moiety is not substantially reduced by thesubstitution (e.g., the dissociation constant of the nucleic acidtargeting moiety for the target should not be greater than about 1×10⁻³M).

It will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art thatnucleic acids in accordance with the present invention may comprisenucleotides entirely of the types found in naturally occurring nucleicacids, or may instead include one or more nucleotide analogs or have astructure that otherwise differs from that of a naturally occurringnucleic acid. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,403,779; 6,399,754; 6,225,460; 6,127,533;6,031,086; 6,005,087; 5,977,089; and references therein disclose a widevariety of specific nucleotide analogs and modifications that may beused. See Crooke, S. (ed.) Antisense Drug Technology: Principles,Strategies, and Applications (1^(st) ed), Marcel Dekker; ISBN:0824705661; 1st edition (2001) and references therein. For example,2′-modifications include halo, alkoxy and allyloxy groups. In someembodiments, the 2′-OH group is replaced by a group selected from H, OR,R, halo, SH, SR₁, NH₂, NH_(R), NR₂ or CN, wherein R is C₁-C₆ alkyl,alkenyl, or alkynyl, and halo is F, Cl, Br or I. Examples of modifiedlinkages include phosphorothioate and 5′-N-phosphoramidite linkages.

Nucleic acids comprising a variety of different nucleotide analogs,modified backbones, or non-naturally occurring internucleoside linkagescan be utilized in accordance with the present invention. Nucleic acidsof the present invention may include natural nucleosides (i.e.,adenosine, thymidine, guanosine, cytidine, uridine, deoxyadenosine,deoxythymidine, deoxyguanosine, and deoxycytidine) or modifiednucleosides. Examples of modified nucleotides include base modifiednucleoside (e.g., aracytidine, inosine, isoguanosine, nebularine,pseudouridine, 2,6-diaminopurine, 2-aminopurine, 2-thiothymidine,3-deaza-5-azacytidine, 2′-deoxyuridine, 3-nitorpyrrole, 4-methylindole,4-thiouridine, 4-thiothymidine, 2-aminoadenosine, 2-thiothymidine,2-thiouridine, 5-bromocytidine, 5-iodouridine, inosine, 6-azauridine,6-chloropurine, 7-deazaadenosine, 7-deazaguanosine, 8-azaadenosine,8-azidoadenosine, benzimidazole, M1-methyladenosine, pyrrolo-pyrimidine,2-amino-6-chloropurine, 3-methyl adenosine, 5-propynylcytidine,5-propynyluridine, 5-bromouridine, 5-fluorouridine, 5-methylcytidine,7-deazaadenosine, 7-deazaguanosine, 8-oxoadenosine, 8-oxoguanosine,O(6)-methylguanine, and 2-thiocytidine), chemically or biologicallymodified bases (e.g., methylated bases), modified sugars (e.g.,2′-fluororibose, 2′-aminoribose, 2′-azidoribose, 2′-O-methylribose,L-enantiomeric nucleosides arabinose, and hexose), modified phosphategroups (e.g., phosphorothioates and 5′-N-phosphoramidite linkages), andcombinations thereof. Natural and modified nucleotide monomers for thechemical synthesis of nucleic acids are readily available. In somecases, nucleic acids comprising such modifications display improvedproperties relative to nucleic acids consisting only of naturallyoccurring nucleotides. In some embodiments, nucleic acid modificationsdescribed herein are utilized to reduce and/or prevent digestion bynucleases (e.g. exonucleases, endonucleases, etc.). For example, thestructure of a nucleic acid may be stabilized by including nucleotideanalogs at the 3′ end of one or both strands order to reduce digestion.

Modified nucleic acids need not be uniformly modified along the entirelength of the molecule. Different nucleotide modifications and/orbackbone structures may exist at various positions in the nucleic acid.One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the nucleotideanalogs or other modification(s) may be located at any position(s) of anucleic acid such that the function of the nucleic acid is notsubstantially affected. To give but one example, modifications may belocated at any position of an aptamer such that the ability of theaptamer to specifically bind to the aptamer target is not substantiallyaffected. The modified region may be at the 5′-end and/or the 3′-end ofone or both strands. For example, modified aptamers in whichapproximately 1-5 residues at the 5′ and/or 3′ end of either of bothstrands are nucleotide analogs and/or have a backbone modification havebeen employed. The modification may be a 5′ or 3′ terminal modification.One or both nucleic acid strands may comprise at least 50% unmodifiednucleotides, at least 80% unmodified nucleotides, at least 90%unmodified nucleotides, or 100% unmodified nucleotides.

Nucleic acids in accordance with the present invention may, for example,comprise a modification to a sugar, nucleoside, or internucleosidelinkage such as those described in U.S. Patent Publications2003/0175950, 2004/0192626, 2004/0092470, 2005/0020525, and2005/0032733. The present invention encompasses the use of any nucleicacid having any one or more of the modification described therein. Forexample, a number of terminal conjugates, e.g., lipids such ascholesterol, lithocholic acid, aluric acid, or long alkyl branchedchains have been reported to improve cellular uptake. Analogs andmodifications may be tested using, e.g., using any appropriate assayknown in the art, for example, to select those that result in improveddelivery of a therapeutic agent, improved specific binding of an aptamerto an aptamer target, etc. In some embodiments, nucleic acids inaccordance with the present invention may comprise one or morenon-natural nucleoside linkages. In some embodiments, one or moreinternal nucleotides at the 3′-end, 5′-end, or both 3′- and 5′-ends ofthe aptamer are inverted to yield a such as a 3′-3′ linkage or a 5′-5′linkage.

In some embodiments, nucleic acids in accordance with the presentinvention are not synthetic, but are naturally-occurring entities thathave been isolated from their natural environments.

Small Molecule Targeting Moieties

In some embodiments, a targeting moiety in accordance with the presentinvention may be a small molecule. In certain embodiments, smallmolecules are less than about 2000 g/mol in size. In some embodiments,small molecules are less than about 1500 g/mol or less than about 1000g/mol. In some embodiments, small molecules are less than about 800g/mol or less than about 500 g/mol.

One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any small moleculethat specifically binds to a desired target can be used in accordancewith the present invention. One exemplary small molecule targetingmoiety is folic acid. Folic acid (i.e., pteroylglutamic acid, VitaminB9) specifically binds to the folate receptor (FR), which ispreferentially expressed in tumor tissues relative to healthy tissues(Low et al., 2004, Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev., 56:1055).

In some embodiments, small molecule targeting moietiess that may be usedto target cells associated with prostate cancer tumors include PSMApeptidase inhibitors, such as 2-PMPA, GPI5232, VA-033,phenylalkylphosphonamidates (Jackson et al., 2001, Curr. Med. Chem.,8:949; Bennett et al., 1998, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 120:12139; Jackson etal., 2001, J. Med. Chem., 44:4170; Tsukamoto et al., 2002, Bioorg. Med.Chem. Lett., 12:2189; Tang et al., 2003, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun.,307:8; Oliver et al., 2003, Bioorg. Med. Chem., 11:4455; and Maung etal., 2004, Bioorg. Med. Chem., 12:4969), and/or analogs and derivativesthereof. In some embodiments, small molecule targeting moieties that maybe used to target cells associated with prostate cancer tumors includethiol and indole thiol derivatives, such as 2-MPPA and3-(2-mercaptoethyl)-1H-indole-2-carboxylic acid derivatives (Majer etal., 2003, J. Med. Chem., 46:1989; and U.S. Patent Publication2005/0080128). In some embodiments, small molecule targeting moietiesthat may be used to target cells associated with prostate cancer tumorsinclude hydroxamate derivatives (Stoermer et al., 2003, Bioorg. Med.Chem. Lett., 13:2097). In some embodiments, small molecule targetingmoieties that may be used to target cells associated with prostatecancer tumors include PBDA- and urea-based inhibitors, such as ZJ 43, ZJ11, ZJ 17, ZJ 38 (Nan et al., 2000, J. Med. Chem., 43:772; andKozikowski et al., 2004, J. Med. Chem., 47:1729), and/or and analogs andderivatives thereof. In some embodiments, small molecule targetingmoieties that may be used to target cells associated with prostatecancer tumors include androgen receptor targeting agents (ARTAs), suchas those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,026,500; 7,022,870; 6,998,500;6,995,284; 6,838,484; 6,569,896; 6,492,554; and in U.S. PatentPublications 2006/0287547; 2006/0276540; 2006/0258628; 2006/0241180;2006/0183931; 2006/0035966; 2006/0009529; 2006/0004042; 2005/0033074;2004/0260108; 2004/0260092; 2004/0167103; 2004/0147550; 2004/0147489;2004/0087810; 2004/0067979; 2004/0052727; 2004/0029913; 2004/0014975;2003/0232792; 2003/0232013; 2003/0225040; 2003/0162761; 2004/0087810;2003/0022868; 2002/0173495; 2002/0099096; 2002/0099036. In someembodiments, small molecule targeting moieties that may be used totarget cells associated with prostate cancer tumors include polyamines,such as putrescine, spermine, and spermidine (U.S. Patent Publications2005/0233948 and 2003/0035804).

Protein Targeting Moieties

In some embodiments, a targeting moiety in accordance with the presentinvention may be a protein or peptide. In certain embodiments, peptidesrange from about 5 to 100, 10 to 75, 15 to 50, or 20 to 25 amino acidsin size. In some embodiments, a peptide sequence can be based on thesequence of a protein. In some embodiments, a peptide sequence can be arandom arrangement of amino acids.

The terms “polypeptide” and “peptide” are used interchangeably herein,with “peptide” typically referring to a polypeptide having a length ofless than about 100 amino acids. Polypeptides may contain L-amino acids,D-amino acids, or both and may contain any of a variety of amino acidmodifications or analogs known in the art. Useful modifications include,e.g., terminal acetylation, amidation, lipidation, phosphorylation,glycosylation, acylation, farnesylation, sulfation, etc.

Exemplary proteins that may be used as targeting moieties in accordancewith the present invention include, but are not limited to, antibodies,receptors, cytokines, peptide hormones, proteins derrived fromcombinatorial libraries (e.g. avimers, affibodies, etc.), andcharacteristic portions thereof.

In some embodiments, any protein targeting moiety can be utilized inaccordance with the present invention. To give but a few examples, IL-2,transferrin, GM-CSF, α-CD25, α-CD22, TGF-α, folic acid, α-CEA, α-EpCAMscFV, VEGF, LHRH, bombesin, somatostin, Gal, α-GD2, α-EpCAM, α-CD20,MOv19 scFv, α-Her-2, and α-CD64 can be used to target a variety ofcancers, such as lymphoma, glioma, leukemia, brain tumors, melanoma,ovarian cancer, neuroblastoma, folate receptor-expressing tumors,CEA-expressing tumors, EpCAM-expressing tumors, VEGF-expressing tumors,etc. (Eklund et al., 2005, Expert Rev. Anticancer Ther., 5:33; Kreitmanet al., 2000, J. Clin. Oncol., 18:1622; Kreitman et al., 2001, N. Engl.J. Med., 345:241; Sampson et al., 2003, J. Neurooncol., 65:27; Weaver etal., 2003, J. Neurooncol., 65:3; Leamon et al., 1993, J. Biol. Chem.,268:24847; Leamon et al., 1994, J. Drug Target., 2:101; Atkinson et al.,2001, J. Biol. Chem., 276:27930; Frankel et al., 2002, Clin. CancerRes., 8:1004; Francis et al., 2002, Br. J. Cancer, 87:600; de Graaf etal., 2002, Br. J. Cancer, 86:811; Spooner et al., 2003, Br. J. Cancer,88:1622; Liu et al., 1999, J. Drug Target., 7:43; Robinson et al., 2004,Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 101:14527; Sondel et al., 2003, Curr. Opin.Investig. Drugs, 4:696; Connor et al., 2004, J. Immunother., 27:211;Gillies et al., 2005, Blood, 105:3972; Melani et al., 1998, Cancer Res.,58:4146; Metelitsa et al., 2002, Blood, 99:4166; Lyu et al., 2005, Mol.Cancer Ther., 4:1205; and Notter et al., 2001, Blood, 97:3138).

In some embodiments, protein targeting moieties can be peptides. One ofordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any peptide thatspecifically binds to a desired target can be used in accordance withthe present invention.

In some embodiments, peptide targeting moieties which target tumorvasculature can be used in accordance with the present invention. Insome embodiments, peptides targeting tumor vasculature are antagonistsor inhibitors of angiogenic proteins that include VEGFR(Binetruy-Tournaire et al., 2000, EMBO J., 19:1525),CD36 (Reiher et al.,2002, Int. J. Cancer, 98:682) integrins α_(v)β₃ and α_(v)β₅ (Koivunen etal., 1995, Biotechnology (NY), 13:265; and Kumar et al., 2001, CancerRes., 61:2232) aminopeptidase N (Pasqualini et al., 2000, Cancer Res.,60:722), and matrix metalloproteinases (Koivunen et al., 1999, Nat.Biotechnol., 17:768). For instance, ATWLPPR peptide is a potentantagonist of VEGF (Binetruy-Tournaire et al., 2000, EMBO J., 19:1525);thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1) mimetics can induce apoptosis in endothelialcells (Reiher et al., 2002, Int. J. Cancer, 98:682); RGD-motif mimics(e.g. cyclic peptide ACDCRGDCFCG and RGD peptidomimetic SCH 221153)block integrin receptors (Koivunen et al., 1995, Biotechnology (NY),13:265; and Kumar et al., 2001, Cancer Res., 61:2232); NGR-containingpeptides (e.g. cyclic CNGRC) inhibit aminopeptidase N (Pasqualini etal., 2000, Cancer Res., 60:722); and cyclic peptides containing thesequence of HWGF (e.g. CTTHWGFTLC) selectively inhibit MMP-2 and MMP-9(Koivunen et al., 1999, Nat. Biotechnol., 17:768); and a LyP-1 peptidehas been identified (CGNKRTRGC) which specifically binds to tumorlymphatic vessels and induces apoptosis of endothelial cells (Laakkonenet al., 2004, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 101:9381).

In some embodiments, peptide targeting moieties include peptide analogsthat block binding of peptide hormones to receptors expressed in humancancers (Bauer et al., 1982, Life Sci., 31:1133). Exemplary hormonereceptors (Reubi et al., 2003, Endocr. Rev., 24:389) include (1)somatostatin receptors (e.g. octreotide, vapreotide, and lanretode)(Froidevaux et al., 2002, Biopolymers, 66:161); (2)bombesin/gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) receptor (e.g. RC-3940 series)(Kanashiro et al., 2003, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 100:15836); and(3) LHRH receptor (e.g. Decapeptyl®, Lupron®, Zoladex®, and Cetrorelix®)(Schally et al., 2000, Prostate, 45:158).

In some embodiments, peptides which recognize IL-11 receptor-α can beused to target cells associated with prostate cancer tumors (see, e.g.,U.S. Patent Publication 2005/0191294).

In some embodiments, protein targeting moieties can be antibodies. Oneof ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any antibody thatspecifically binds to a desired target can be used in accordance withthe present invention.

In some embodiments, antibodies which recognize PSMA can be used totarget cells associated with prostate cancer tumors. Such antibodiesinclude, but are not limited to, scFv antibodies A5, G0, G1, G2, and G4and mAbs 3/E7, 3/F11, 3/A12, K7, K12, and D20 (Elsässer-Beile et al.,2006, Prostate, 66:1359); mAbs E99, J591, J533, and J415 (Liu et al.,1997, Cancer Res., 57:3629; Liu et al., 1998, Cancer Res., 58:4055;Fracasso et al., 2002, Prostate, 53:9; McDevitt et al., 2000, CancerRes., 60:6095; McDevitt et al., 2001, Science, 294:1537; Smith-Jones etal., 2000, Cancer Res., 60:5237; Vallabhajosula et al., 2004, Prostate,58:145; Bander et al., 2003, J. Urol., 170:1717; Patri et al., 2004,Bioconj. Chem., 15:1174; and U.S. Pat. No. 7,163,680); mAb 7E11-C5.3(Horoszewicz et al., 1987, Anticancer Res., 7:927); antibody 7E11(Horoszewicz et al., 1987, Anticancer Res., 7:927; and U.S. Pat. No.5,162,504); and antibodies described in Chang et al., 1999, Cancer Res.,59:3192; Murphy et al., 1998, J. Urol., 160:2396; Grauer et al., 1998,Cancer Res., 58:4787; and Wang et al., 2001, Int. J. Cancer, 92:871. Oneof ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any antibody thatrecognizes and/or specifically binds to PSMA may be used in accordancewith the present invention.

In some embodiments, antibodies which recognize other prostatetumor-associated antigens are known in the art and can be used inaccordance with the present invention to target cells associated withprostate cancer tumors (see, e.g., Vihko et al., 1985, Biotechnology inDiagnostics, 131; Babaian et al., 1987, J. Urol., 137:439; Leroy et al.,1989, Cancer, 64:1; Meyers et al., 1989, Prostate, 14:209; and U.S. Pat.Nos. 4,970,299; 4,902,615; 4,446,122 and Re 33,405; 4,862,851;5,055,404). To give but a few examples, antibodies have been identifiedwhich recognize transmembrane protein 24P4C12 (U.S. Patent Publication2005/0019870); calveolin (U.S. Patent Publications 2003/0003103 and2001/0012890); L6 (U.S. Patent Publication 2004/0156846); prostatespecific reductase polypeptide (U.S. Pat. No. 5,786,204; and U.S. PatentPublication 2002/0150578); and prostate stem cell antigen (U.S. PatentPublication 2006/0269557).

In some embodiments, protein targeting moieties that may be used totarget cells associated with prostate cancer tumors includeconformationally constricted dipeptide mimetics (Ding et al., 2004, Org.Lett., 6:1805).

In some embodiments, a targeting moiety may be an antibody and/orcharacteristic portion thereof. The term “antibody” refers to anyimmunoglobulin, whether natural or wholly or partially syntheticallyproduced and to derivatives thereof and characteristic portions thereof.An antibody may be monoclonal or polyclonal. An antibody may be a memberof any immunoglobulin class, including any of the human classes: IgG,IgM, IgA, IgD, and IgE.

As used herein, an antibody fragment (i.e. characteristic portion of anantibody) refers to any derivative of an antibody which is less thanfull-length. In general, an antibody fragment retains at least asignificant portion of the full-length antibody's specific bindingability. Examples of antibody fragments include, but are not limited to,Fab, Fab′, F(ab′)2, scFv, Fv, dsFv diabody, and Fd fragments.

An antibody fragment may be produced by any means. For example, anantibody fragment may be enzymatically or chemically produced byfragmentation of an intact antibody and/or it may be recombinantlyproduced from a gene encoding the partial antibody sequence.Alternatively or additionally, an antibody fragment may be wholly orpartially synthetically produced. An antibody fragment may optionallycomprise a single chain antibody fragment. Alternatively oradditionally, an antibody fragment may comprise multiple chains whichare linked together, for example, by disulfide linkages. An antibodyfragment may optionally comprise a multimolecular complex. A functionalantibody fragment will typically comprise at least about 50 amino acidsand more typically will comprise at least about 200 amino acids.

In some embodiments, antibodies may include chimeric (e.g. “humanized”)and single chain (recombinant) antibodies. In some embodiments,antibodies may have reduced effector functions and/or bispecificmolecules. In some embodiments, antibodies may include fragmentsproduced by a Fab expression library.

Single-chain Fvs (scFvs) are recombinant antibody fragments consistingof only the variable light chain (VL) and variable heavy chain (VH)covalently connected to one another by a polypeptide linker. Either VLor VH may comprise the NH2-terminal domain. The polypeptide linker maybe of variable length and composition so long as the two variabledomains are bridged without significant steric interference. Typically,linkers primarily comprise stretches of glycine and serine residues withsome glutamic acid or lysine residues interspersed for solubility.

Diabodies are dimeric scFvs. Diabodies typically have shorter peptidelinkers than most scFvs, and they often show a preference forassociating as dimers.

An Fv fragment is an antibody fragment which consists of one VH and oneVL domain held together by noncovalent interactions. The term “dsFv” asused herein refers to an Fv with an engineered intermolecular disulfidebond to stabilize the VH-VL pair.

A F(ab′)2 fragment is an antibody fragment essentially equivalent tothat obtained from immunoglobulins by digestion with an enzyme pepsin atpH 4.0-4.5. The fragment may be recombinantly produced.

A Fab′ fragment is an antibody fragment essentially equivalent to thatobtained by reduction of the disulfide bridge or bridges joining the twoheavy chain pieces in the F(ab′)2 fragment. The Fab′ fragment may berecombinantly produced.

A Fab fragment is an antibody fragment essentially equivalent to thatobtained by digestion of immunoglobulins with an enzyme (e.g. papain).The Fab fragment may be recombinantly produced. The heavy chain segmentof the Fab fragment is the Fd piece.

Carbohydrate Targeting Moieties

In some embodiments, a targeting moiety in accordance with the presentinvention may comprise a carbohydrate. To give but one example, lactoseand/or galactose can be used for targeting hepatocytes.

In some embodiments, a carbohydrate may be a polysaccharide comprisingsimple sugars (or their derivatives) connected by glycosidic bonds, asknown in the art. Such sugars may include, but are not limited to,glucose, fructose, galactose, ribose, lactose, sucrose, maltose,trehalose, cellbiose, mannose, xylose, arabinose, glucoronic acid,galactoronic acid, mannuronic acid, glucosamine, galatosamine, andneuramic acid. In some embodiments, a carbohydrate may be one or more ofpullulan, cellulose, microcrystalline cellulose, hydroxypropylmethylcellulose, hydroxycellulose, methylcellulose, dextran,cyclodextran, glycogen, starch, hydroxyethylstarch, carageenan, glycon,amylose, chitosan, N,O-carboxylmethylchitosan, algin and alginic acid,starch, chitin, heparin, konjac, glucommannan, pustulan, heparin,hyaluronic acid, curdlan, and xanthan.

In some embodiments, the carbohydrate may be aminated, carboxylated,and/or sulfated. In some embodiments, hydrophilic polysaccharides can bemodified to become hydrophobic by introducing a large number ofside-chain hydrophobic groups. In some embodiments, a hydrophobiccarbohydrate may include cellulose acetate, pullulan acetate, konjacacetate, amylose acetate, and dextran acetate.

Lipid Targeting Moieties

In some embodiments, a targeting moiety in accordance with the presentinvention may comprise one or more fatty acid groups or salts thereof.In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may comprise digestible, longchain (e.g., C₈-C₅₀), substituted or unsubstituted hydrocarbons. In someembodiments, a fatty acid group may be a C₁₀-C₂₀ fatty acid or saltthereof. In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may be a C₁₅-C₂₀ fattyacid or salt thereof. In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may be aC₁₅-C₂₅ fatty acid or salt thereof. In some embodiments, a fatty acidgroup may be unsaturated. In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may bemonounsaturated. In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may bepolyunsaturated. In some embodiments, a double bond of an unsaturatedfatty acid group may be in the cis conformation. In some embodiments, adouble bond of an unsaturated fatty acid may be in the transconformation.

In some embodiments, a fatty acid group may be one or more of butyric,caproic, caprylic, capric, lauric, myristic, palmitic, stearic,arachidic, behenic, or lignoceric acid. In some embodiments, a fattyacid group may be one or more of palmitoleic, oleic, vaccenic, linoleic,alpha-linoleic, gamma-linoleic, arachidonic, gadoleic, arachidonic,eicosapentaenoic, docosahexaenoic, or erucic acid.

Targets

In certain embodiments, targeted particles in accordance with thepresent invention comprise a targeting moiety which specifically bindsto one or more targets (e.g. antigens) associated with an organ, tissue,cell, extracellular matrix, and/or intracellular compartment. In someembodiments, targeted particles comprise a targeting moiety whichspecifically binds to targets associated with a particular organ ororgan system. In some embodiments, targeted particles in accordance withthe present invention comprise a targeting moiety which specificallybinds to one or more intracellular targets (e.g. organelle,intracellular protein). In some embodiments, targeted particles comprisea targeting moiety which specifically binds to targets associated withdiseased tissues. In some embodiments, targeted particles comprise atargeting moiety which specifically binds to targets associated withparticular cell types (e.g. endothelial cells, cancer cells, malignantcells, prostate cancer cells, etc.).

In some embodiments, targeted particles in accordance with the presentinvention comprise a targeting moiety which binds to a target that isspecific for one or more particular tissue types (e.g. liver tissue vs.prostate tissue). In some embodiments, targeted particles in accordancewith the present invention comprise a targeting moiety which binds to atarget that is specific for one or more particular cell types (e.g. Tcells vs. B cells). In some embodiments, targeted particles inaccordance with the present invention comprise a targeting moiety whichbinds to a target that is specific for one or more particular diseasestates (e.g. tumor cells vs. healthy cells). In some embodiments,targeted particles in accordance with the present invention comprise atargeting moiety which binds to a target that is specific for one ormore particular developmental stages (e.g. stem cells vs. differentiatedcells).

In some embodiments, a target may be a marker that is exclusively orprimarily associated with one or a few cell types, with one or a fewdiseases, and/or with one or a few developmental stages. A cell typespecific marker is typically expressed at levels at least 2 fold greaterin that cell type than in a reference population of cells which mayconsist, for example, of a mixture containing cells from a plurality(e.g., 5-10 or more) of different tissues or organs in approximatelyequal amounts. In some embodiments, the cell type specific marker ispresent at levels at least 3 fold, at least 4 fold, at least 5 fold, atleast 6 fold, at least 7 fold, at least 8 fold, at least 9 fold, atleast 10 fold, at least 50 fold, at least 1000 fold, or at least 1000fold greater than its average expression in a reference population.Detection or measurement of a cell type specific marker may make itpossible to distinguish the cell type or types of interest from cells ofmany, most, or all other types.

In some embodiments, a target can comprise a protein, a carbohydrate, alipid, and/or a nucleic acid. In certain embodiments, a target cancomprise a protein and/or characteristic portion thereof, such as atumor-marker, integrin, cell surface receptor, transmembrane protein,intercellular protein, ion channel, membrane transporter protein,enzyme, antibody, chimeric protein, glycoprotein, etc. In certainembodiments, a target can comprise a carbohydrate and/or characteristicportion thereof, such as a glycoprotein, sugar (e.g., monosaccharide,disaccharide, polysaccharide), glycocalyx (i.e., the carbohydrate-richperipheral zone on the outside surface of most eukaryotic cells) etc. Incertain embodiments, a target can comprise a lipid and/or characteristicportion thereof, such as an oil, fatty acid, glyceride, hormone, steroid(e.g., cholesterol, bile acid), vitamin (e.g. vitamin E), phospholipid,sphingolipid, lipoprotein, etc. In certain embodiments, a target cancomprise a nucleic acid and/or characteristic portion thereof, such as aDNA nucleic acid; RNA nucleic acid; modified DNA nucleic acid; modifiedRNA nucleic acid; nucleic acid that includes any combination of DNA,RNA, modified DNA, and modified RNA; etc.

Numerous markers are known in the art. Typical markers include cellsurface proteins, e.g., receptors. Exemplary receptors include, but arenot limited to, the transferrin receptor; LDL receptor; growth factorreceptors such as epidermal growth factor receptor family members (e.g.,EGFR, HER-2, HER-3, HER-4, HER-2/neu) or vascular endothelial growthfactor receptors; cytokine receptors; cell adhesion molecules;integrins; selectins; CD molecules; etc. The marker can be a moleculethat is present exclusively or in higher amounts on a malignant cell,e.g., a tumor antigen. For example, prostate-specific membrane antigen(PSMA) is expressed at the surface of prostate cancer cells. In certainembodiments of the invention the marker is an endothelial cell marker.

In certain embodiments of the invention a marker is a tumor marker. Themarker may be a polypeptide that is expressed at higher levels ondividing than on non-dividing cells. For example, Her-2/neu (also knownas ErbB-2) is a member of the EGF receptor family and is expressed onthe cell surface of tumors associated with breast cancer. To giveanother example, a peptide known as F3 is a suitable targeting agent fordirecting a nanoparticle to nucleolin (Porkka et al., 2002, Proc. Natl.Acad. Sci., USA, 99:7444; and Christian et al., 2003, J. Cell Biol.,163:871). As described in the Examples, targeted particles comprising ananoparticle and the A10 aptamer (which specifically binds to PSMA) wereable to specifically and effectively deliver docetaxel to prostatecancer tumors.

In some embodiments, a marker is a prostate cancer marker. In someembodiments, a prostate cancer marker is expressed by prostate cells butnot by other cell types. In some embodiments, a prostate cancer markeris expressed by prostate cancer tumor cells but not by other cell types.Any prostate cancer marker can be used in accordance with the presentinvention. To give but one non-limiting example, in certain embodiments,a prostate cancer marker is prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA), a100 kDa transmembrane glycoprotein that is expressed in most prostatictissues, but is more highly expressed in prostatic cancer tissue than innormal tissue.

In some embodiments, a prostate cancer marker is transmembrane protein24P4C12 (U.S. Patent Publication 2005/0019870). In some embodiments, aprostate cancer marker is prostate stem cell antigen (U.S. PatentPublication 2006/0269557). In some embodiments, a prostate cancer markeris the androgen receptor (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,026,500;7,022,870; 6,998,500; 6,995,284; 6,838,484; 6,569,896; 6,492,554; andU.S. Patent Publications 2006/0287547; 2006/0276540; 2006/0258628;2006/0241180; 2006/0183931; 2006/0035966; 2006/0009529; 2006/0004042;2005/0033074; 2004/0260108; 2004/0260092; 2004/0167103; 2004/0147550;2004/0147489; 2004/0087810; 2004/0067979; 2004/0052727; 2004/0029913;2004/0014975; 2003/0232792; 2003/0232013; 2003/0225040; 2003/0162761;2004/0087810; 2003/0022868; 2002/0173495; 2002/0099096; and2002/0099036). In some embodiments, a prostate cancer marker iscalveolin (U.S. Pat. No. 7,029,859; and U.S. Patent Publications2003/0003103 and 2001/0012890). In some embodiments, a prostate cancermarker is prostate specific antigen. In some embodiments, a prostatecancer marker is human glandular kallikrein 2. In some embodiments, aprostate cancer marker is prostatic acid phosphatase. In someembodiments, a prostate cancer marker is insulin-like growth factorand/or insulin-like growth factor binding protein. In some embodiments,a prostate cancer marker is PHOR-1 (U.S. Patent Publication2004/0248088). In some embodiments, a prostate cancer marker is C-typelectin transmembrane antigen (U.S. Patent Publication 2005/0019872). Insome embodiments, a prostate cancer marker is a protein encoded by103P2D6 (U.S. Patent Publication 2003/0219766). In some embodiments, aprostate cancer marker is a prostatic specific reductase polypeptide(U.S. Pat. No. 5,786,204; and U.S. Patent Publication 2002/0150578). Insome embodiments, a prostate cancer marker is an IL-11 receptor-α (U.S.Patent Publication 2005/0191294).

Novel Targeting Moieties

The present invention provides methods for designing novel targetingmoieties. The present invention further provides methods for isolatingor identifying novel targeting moieties from a mixture of candidatetargeting moieties.

Targeting moieties that bind to a protein, a carbohydrate, a lipid,and/or a nucleic acid can be designed and/or identified. In someembodiments, targeting moieties can be designed and/or identified foruse in the targeted particles of the invention that bind to proteinsand/or characteristic portions thereof, such as tumor-markers,integrins, cell surface receptors, transmembrane proteins, intercellularproteins, ion channels, membrane transporter proteins, enzymes,antibodies, chimeric proteins etc. In some embodiments, targetingmoieties can be designed and/or identified for use in the targetedparticles of the invention that bind to carbohydrates and/orcharacteristic portions thereof, such as glycoproteins, sugars (e.g.,monosaccharides, disaccharides and polysaccharides), glycocalyx (i.e.,the carbohydrate-rich peripheral zone on the outside surface of mosteukaryotic cells) etc. In some embodiments, targeting moieties can bedesigned and/or identified for use in the targeted particles of theinvention that bind to lipids and/or characteristic portions thereof,such as oils, saturated fatty acids, unsaturated fatty acids,glycerides, hormones, steroids (e.g., cholesterol, bile acids), vitamins(e.g. vitamin E), phospholipids, sphingolipids, lipoproteins etc. Insome embodiments, targeting moieties can be designed and/or identifiedfor use in the targeted particles of the invention that bind to nucleicacids and/or characteristic portions thereof, such as DNA nucleic acids;RNA nucleic acids; modified DNA nucleic acids; modified RNA nucleicacids; and nucleic acids that include any combination of DNA, RNA,modified DNA, and modified RNA; etc.

Nucleic acid targeting moieties (e.g. aptamers) may be designed and/oridentified using any available method. In some embodiments, nucleic acidtargeting moieties are designed and/or identified by identifying nucleicacid targeting moieties from a candidate mixture of nucleic acids.Systemic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment (SELEX), or avariation thereof, is a commonly used method of identifying nucleic acidtargeting moieties that bind to a target from a candidate mixture ofnucleic acids.

The SELEX process for designing and/or identifying nucleic acidtargeting moieties is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,482,594; 6,458,543;6,458,539; 6,376,190; 6,344,318; 6,242,246; 6,184,364; 6,001,577;5,958,691; 5,874,218; 5,853,984; 5,843,732; 5,843,653; 5,817,785;5,789,163; 5,763,177; 5,696,249; 5,660,985; 5,595,877; 5,567,588; and5,270,163. Briefly, the basic SELEX process may be defined by thefollowing series of steps:

1) A candidate mixture of nucleic acids of differing sequence isprepared. A candidate mixture generally includes regions of fixedsequences (i.e., each of the members of the candidate mixture containsthe same sequences in the same location) and regions of randomizedsequences. Fixed sequence regions are selected to assist in theamplification steps described below; to mimic a sequence known to bindto the target; and/or to enhance the potential of a given structuralarrangement of the nucleic acids in the candidate mixture. Randomizedsequences can be totally randomized (i.e., the probability of finding abase at any position being one in four) or only partially randomized(i.e., the probability of finding a base at any location can be selectedat any level between 0% and 100%).

2) The candidate mixture is contacted with a selected target underconditions favorable for binding between the target and members of thecandidate mixture. Under these circumstances, the interaction betweenthe target and the nucleic acids of the candidate mixture can beconsidered as forming nucleic acid-target pairs between the target andthe nucleic acids having the strongest affinity for the target.

3) Nucleic acids with the highest affinity for the target arepartitioned from those nucleic acids with lesser affinity to the target.Because only an extremely small number of sequences (and possibly onlyone molecule of nucleic acid) corresponding to the highest affinitytargeting moieties exist in the candidate mixture, it is generallydesirable to set the partitioning criteria so that a significant amountof the targeting moieties in the candidate mixture (approximately0.1%-10%) is retained during partitioning.

4) Those targeting moieties selected during partitioning as having therelatively higher affinity to the target are then amplified to create anew candidate mixture that is enriched in targeting moieties having arelatively higher affinity for the target.

5) By repeating the partitioning and amplifying steps above, the newlyformed candidate mixture contains fewer and fewer unique sequences, andthe average degree of affinity of the nucleic acid mixture to the targetwill generally increase. Taken to its extreme, the SELEX process willyield a candidate mixture containing one or a small number of uniquetargeting moieties representing those targeting moieties from theoriginal candidate mixture having the highest affinity to the target. Ingeneral, targeting moieties identified will have a dissociation constantwith the target of about 1×10⁻⁶ M or less. Typically, the dissociationconstant of the nucleic acid targeting moiety and the target will be inthe range of between about 1×10−8 M and about 1×10−12 M.

Nucleic acid targeting moieties that bind selectively to any target canbe isolated by the SELEX process, or a variation thereof, provided thatthe target can be used as a target in the SELEX process.

Alternatively or additionally, Polyplex In Vivo CombinatorialOptimization (PICO) is a method that can be used to identify nucleicacid targeting moieties (e.g. aptamers) that bind to a target from acandidate mixture of nucleic acids in vivo and/or in vitro and isdescribed in co-pending PCT Application US06/47975, entitled “System forScreening Particles,” filed Dec. 15, 2006. Briefly, the basic PICOprocess may be defined by the following series of steps:

1) A library comprising a plurality of nucleic acids is provided andassociated with particles (e.g. nanoparticles).

2) The targeted particles are administered to an animal (e.g. mouse)under conditions in which the particles can migrate to a tissue ofinterest (e.g. tumor).

3) A first population of targeted particles that have migrated to thecells, tissue, or organ of interest is recovered. The nucleic acidtargeting moieties associated with the first population of targetedparticles are amplified and associated with new particles.

4) Selection is repeated several times to yield a set of nucleic acidtargeting moieties with specificity for the target tissue that isincreased relative to the original library.

Nucleic acid targeting moieties that bind selectively to any in vivoand/or in vitro target can be isolated by the PICO process, providedthat the target can be used as a target in the PICO process.

Agents to be Delivered

According to the present invention, inventive targeted particles may beused for delivery of any agent, including, for example, therapeutic,diagnostic, and/or prophylactic agents. Exemplary agents to be deliveredin accordance with the present invention include, but are not limitedto, small molecules, organometallic compounds, nucleic acids, proteins(including multimeric proteins, protein complexes, etc.), peptides,lipids, carbohydrates, hormones, metals, radioactive elements andcompounds, drugs, vaccines, immunological agents, etc., and/orcombinations thereof.

In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles comprise less than 50%by weight, less than 40% by weight, less than 30% by weight, less than20% by weight, less than 15% by weight, less than 10% by weight, lessthan 5% by weight, less than 1% by weight, or less than 0.5% by weightof the therapeutic agent to be delivered.

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered may be a mixture ofpharmaceutically active agents. For example, a local anesthetic may bedelivered in combination with an anti-inflammatory agent such as asteroid. To give but another example, an antibiotic may be combined withan inhibitor of the enzyme commonly produced by bacteria to inactivatethe antibiotic (e.g., penicillin and clavulanic acid).

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered may be a mixture ofanti-cancer agents. In some embodiments, inventive targeted particlesare administered in combination with one or more of the anti-canceragents described herein. Combination therapy is described in furtherdetail below, in the section entitled, “Administration.” To give but oneexample, in some embodiments, inventive compositions comprising ananti-cancer agent to be delivered are administered in combination withhormonal therapy. The growth of some types of tumors can be inhibited byproviding or blocking certain hormones. For example, steroids (e.g.dexamethasone) can inhibit tumor growth or associated edema and maycause regression of lymph node malignancies. In some cases, prostatecancer is often sensitive to finasteride, an agent that blocks theperipheral conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone. Breastcancer cells often highly express the estrogen and/or progesteronereceptor. Inhibiting the production (e.g. with aromatase inhibitors) orfunction (e.g. with tamoxifen) of these hormones can often be used inbreast cancer treatments. In some embodiments, gonadotropin-releasinghormone agonists (GnRH), such as goserelin possess a paradoxic negativefeedback effect followed by inhibition of the release of folliclestimulating hormone (FSH) and leuteinizing hormone (LH), when givencontinuously.

Small Molecule Agents

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered is a small moleculeand/or organic compound with pharmaceutical activity. In someembodiments, the agent is a clinically-used drug. In some embodiments,the drug is an anti-cancer agent, antibiotic, anti-viral agent, anti-HIVagent, anti-parasite agent, anti-protozoal agent, anesthetic,anticoagulant, inhibitor of an enzyme, steroidal agent, steroidal ornon-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent, antihistamine, immunosuppres santagent, anti-neoplastic agent, antigen, vaccine, antibody, decongestant,sedative, opioid, analgesic, anti-pyretic, birth control agent, hormone,prostaglandin, progestational agent, anti-glaucoma agent, ophthalmicagent, anti-cholinergic, analgesic, anti-depressant, anti-psychotic,neurotoxin, hypnotic, tranquilizer, anti-convulsant, muscle relaxant,anti-Parkinson agent, anti-spasmodic, muscle contractant, channelblocker, miotic agent, anti-secretory agent, anti-thrombotic agent,anticoagulant, anti-cholinergic, β-adrenergic blocking agent, diuretic,cardiovascular active agent, vasoactive agent, vasodilating agent,anti-hypertensive agent, angiogenic agent, modulators ofcell-extracellular matrix interactions (e.g. cell growth inhibitors andanti-adhesion molecules), inhibitors of DNA, RNA, or protein synthesis,etc.

In certain embodiments, the therapeutic agent to be delivered is ananti-cancer agent (i.e. cytotoxic agents). Most anti-cancer agents canbe divided in to the following categories: alkylating agents,antimetabolites, natural products, and hormones and antagonists.

Anti-cancer agents typically affect cell division and/or DNA synthesis.However, some chemotherapeutic agents do not directly interfere withDNA. To give but one example, tyrosine kinase inhibitors (imatinibmesylate/Gleevec®) directly target a molecular abnormality in certaintypes of cancer (chronic myelogenous leukemia, gastrointestinal stromaltumors, etc.).

Alkylating agents are so named because of their ability to add alkylgroups to many electronegative groups under conditions present in cells.Alkylating agents typically function by chemically modifying cellularDNA. Exemplary alkylating agents include nitrogen mustards (e.g.mechlorethamine, cyclophosphamide, ifosfamide, melphalan (1-sarcolysin),chlorambucil), ethylenimines and methylmelamines (e.g. altretamine(hexamethylmelamine; HMM), thiotepa (triethylene thiophosphoramide),triethylenemelamine (TEM)), alkyl sulfonates (e.g. busulfan),nitrosureas (e.g. carmustine (BCNU), lomustine (CCMU), semustine(methyl-CCNU), streptozocin (streptozotocin)), and triazenes (e.g.dacarbazine (DTIC; dimethyltriazenoimidazolecarboxamide)).

Antimetabolites act by mimicking small molecule metabolites (e.g. folicacid, pyrimidines, and purines) in order to be incorporated into newlysynthesized cellular DNA. Such agents also affect RNA synthesis. Anexemplary folic acid analog is methotrexate (amethopterin). Exemplarypyrimidine analogs include fluorouracil (5-fluorouracil; 5-FU),floxuridine (fluorodeoxyuridine; FUdR), and cytarabine (cytosinearabinoside). Exemplary purine analogs include mercaptopurine(6-mercaptopurine; 6-MP), azathioprine, thioguanine (6-thioguanine; TG),fludarabine phosphate, pentostatin (2′-deoxycoformycin), cladribine(2-chlorodeoxyadenosine; 2-CdA), and erythrohydroxynonyladenine (EHNA).

Natural small molecule products which can be used as anti-cancer agentsinclude plant alkaloids and antibiotics. Plant alkaloids and terpenoids(e.g. vinca alkaloids, podophyllotoxin, taxanes, etc.) typically blockcell division by preventing microtubule function. Vinca alkaloids (e.g.vincristine, vinblastine (VLB), vinorelbine, vindesine, etc.) bind totubulin and inhibit assembly of tubulin into microtubules. Vincaalkaloids are derived from the Madagascar periwinkle, Catharanthusroseus (formerly known as Vinca rosea). Podophyllotoxin is aplant-derived compound used to produce two other cytostatic therapeuticagents, etoposide and teniposide, which prevent cells from entering theG1 and S phases of the cell cycle. Podophyllotoxin is primarily obtainedfrom the American Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum) and a HimalayanMayapple (Podophyllum hexandrum). Taxanes (e.g. paclitaxel, docetaxel,etc.) are derived from the Yew Tree. Taxanes enhance stability ofmicrotubules, preventing the separation of chromosomes during anaphase.

Antibiotics which can be used as anti-cancer agents include dactinomycin(actinomycin D), daunorubicin (daunomycin; rubidomycin), doxorubicin,idarubicin, bleomycin, plicamycin (mithramycin), and mitomycin(mytomycin C).

Other small molecules which can be used as anti-cancer agents includeplatinum coordination complexes (e.g. cisplatin (cis-DDP), carboplatin),anthracenedione (e.g. mitoxantrone), substituted urea (e.g.hydroxyurea), methylhydrazine derivatives (e.g. procarbazine(N-methylhydrazine, MIH), and adrenocortical suppressants (e.g. mitotane(o,p′-DDD), aminoglutethimide).

Hormones which can be used as anti-cancer agents includeadrenocorticosteroids (e.g. prednisone), aminoglutethimide, progestins(e.g. hydroxyprogesterone caproate, medroxyprogesterone acetate,megestrol acetate), estrogens (e.g. diethylstilbestrol, ethinylestradiol), antiestrogen (e.g. tamoxifen), androgens (e.g. testosteronepropionate, fluoxymesterone), antiandrogens (e.g. flutamide), andgonadotropin-releasing hormone analog (e.g. leuprolide).

Topoisomerase inhibitors act by inhibiting the function oftopoisomerases, which are enzymes that maintain the topology of DNA.Inhibition of type I or type II topoisomerases interferes with bothtranscription and replication of DNA by upsetting proper DNAsupercoiling. Some exemplary type I topoisomerase inhibitors includecamptothecins (e.g. irinotecan, topotecan, etc.). Some exemplary type IItopoisomerase inhibitors include amsacrine, etoposide, etoposidephosphate, teniposide, etc., which are semisynthetic derivatives ofepipodophyllotoxins, discussed herein.

In certain embodiments, a small molecule agent can be any drug. In someembodiments, the drug is one that has already been deemed safe andeffective for use in humans or animals by the appropriate governmentalagency or regulatory body. For example, drugs approved for human use arelisted by the FDA under 21 C.F.R. §§330.5, 331 through 361, and 440through 460, incorporated herein by reference; drugs for veterinary useare listed by the FDA under 21 C.F.R. §§500 through 589, incorporatedherein by reference. All listed drugs are considered acceptable for usein accordance with the present invention.

A more complete listing of classes and specific drugs suitable for usein the present invention may be found in Pharmaceutical Drugs:Syntheses, Patents, Applications by Axel Kleemann and Jurgen Engel,Thieme Medical Publishing, 1999 and the Merck Index: An Encyclopedia ofChemicals, Drugs and Biologicals, Ed. by Budavari et al., CRC Press,1996, both of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Nucleic Acid Agents

In certain embodiments of the invention, an inventive targeted particleis used to deliver one or more nucleic acids (e.g. functional RNAs,functional DNAs, etc.) to a specific location such as a tissue, cell, orsubcellular locale.

Functional RNA

In general, a “functional RNA” is an RNA that does not code for aprotein but instead belongs to a class of RNA molecules whose memberscharacteristically possess one or more different functions or activitieswithin a cell. It will be appreciated that the relative activities offunctional RNA molecules having different sequences may differ and maydepend at least in part on the particular cell type in which the RNA ispresent. Thus the term “functional RNA” is used herein to refer to aclass of RNA molecule and is not intended to imply that all members ofthe class will in fact display the activity characteristic of that classunder any particular set of conditions. In some embodiments, functionalRNAs include RNAi agents (e.g. short interfering RNAs (siRNAs), shorthairpin RNAs (shRNAs), and microRNAs), ribozymes, tRNAs, rRNAs, RNAsuseful for triple helix formation, etc.

RNAi is an evolutionarily conserved process in which presence of an atleast partly double-stranded RNA molecule in a eukaryotic cell leads tosequence-specific inhibition of gene expression. RNAi was originallydescribed as a phenomenon in which the introduction of long dsRNA(typically hundreds of nucleotides) into a cell results in degradationof mRNA containing a region complementary to one strand of the dsRNA(U.S. Pat. No. 6,506,559; and Fire et al., 1998, Nature, 391:806).Subsequent studies in Drosophila showed that long dsRNAs are processedby an intracellular RNase III-like enzyme called Dicer into smallerdsRNAs primarily comprised of two approximately 21 nucleotide (nt)strands that form a 19 base pair duplex with 2 nt 3′ overhangs at eachend and 5′-phosphate and 3′-hydroxyl groups (see, e.g., PCT PublicationWO 01/75164; U.S. Patent Publications 2002/0086356 and 2003/0108923;Zamore et al., 2000, Cell, 101:25; and Elbashir et al., 2001, GenesDev., 15:188).

Short dsRNAs having structures such as this, referred to as siRNAs,silence expression of genes that include a region that is substantiallycomplementary to one of the two strands. This strand is referred to asthe “antisense” or “guide” strand, with the other strand often beingreferred to as the “sense” strand. The siRNA is incorporated into aribonucleoprotein complex termed the RNA-induced silencing complex(RISC) that contains member(s) of the Argonaute protein family.Following association of the siRNA with RISC, a helicase activityunwinds the duplex, allowing an alternative duplex to form the guidestrand and a target mRNA containing a portion substantiallycomplementary to the guide strand. An endonuclease activity associatedwith the Argonaute protein(s) present in RISC is responsible for“slicing” the target mRNA, which is then further degraded by cellularmachinery.

Considerable progress towards the practical application of RNAi wasachieved with the discovery that exogenous introduction of siRNAs intomammalian cells can effectively reduce the expression of target genes ina sequence-specific manner via the mechanism described above. A typicalsiRNA structure includes a 19 nucleotide double-stranded portion,comprising a guide strand and an antisense strand. Each strand has a 2nt 3′ overhang. Typically the guide strand of the siRNA is perfectlycomplementary to its target gene and mRNA transcript over at least 17-19contiguous nucleotides, and typically the two strands of the siRNA areperfectly complementary to each other over the duplex portion. However,as will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, perfectcomplementarity is not required. Instead, one or more mismatches in theduplex formed by the guide strand and the target mRNA is oftentolerated, particularly at certain positions, without reducing thesilencing activity below useful levels. For example, there may be 1, 2,3, or even more mismatches between the target mRNA and the guide strand(disregarding the overhangs). Thus, as used herein, two nucleic acidportions such as a guide strand (disregarding overhangs) and a portionof a target mRNA that are “substantially complementary” may be perfectlycomplementary (i.e., they hybridize to one another to form a duplex inwhich each nucleotide is a member of a complementary base pair) or theymay have a lesser degree of complementarity sufficient for hybridizationto occur. One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the twostrands of the siRNA duplex need not be perfectly complementary.Typically at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, or more of thenucleotides in the guide strand of an effective siRNA are complementaryto the target mRNA over at least about 19 contiguous nucleotides. Theeffect of mismatches on silencing efficacy and the locations at whichmismatches may most readily be tolerated are areas of active study (see,e.g., Reynolds et al., 2004, Nat. Biotechnol., 22:326).

It will be appreciated that molecules having the appropriate structureand degree of complementarity to a target gene will exhibit a range ofdifferent silencing efficiencies. A variety of additional designcriteria have been developed to assist in the selection of effectivesiRNA sequences. Numerous software programs that can be used to choosesiRNA sequences that are predicted to be particularly effective tosilence a target gene of choice are available (see, e.g., Yuan et al.,2004, Nucl. Acids. Res., 32:W130; and Santoyo et al., 2005,Bioinformatics, 21:1376).

As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, RNAi may beeffectively mediated by RNA molecules having a variety of structuresthat differ in one or more respects from that described above. Forexample, the length of the duplex can be varied (e.g., from about 17-29nucleotides); the overhangs need not be present and, if present, theirlength and the identity of the nucleotides in the overhangs can vary(though most commonly symmetric dTdT overhangs are employed in syntheticsiRNAs).

Additional structures, referred to as short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs), arecapable of mediating RNA interference. An shRNA is a single RNA strandthat contains two complementary regions that hybridize to one another toform a double-stranded “stem,” with the two complementary regions beingconnected by a single-stranded loop. shRNAs are processedintracellularly by Dicer to form an siRNA structure containing a guidestrand and an antisense strand. While shRNAs can be deliveredexogenously to cells, more typically intracellular synthesis of shRNA isachieved by introducing a plasmid or vector containing a promoteroperably linked to a template for transcription of the shRNA into thecell, e.g., to create a stable cell line or transgenic organism.

While sequence-specific cleavage of target mRNA is currently the mostwidely used means of achieving gene silencing by exogenous delivery ofshort RNAi agents to cells, additional mechanisms of sequence-specificsilencing mediated by short RNA species are known. For example,post-transcriptional gene silencing mediated by small RNA molecules canoccur by mechanisms involving translational repression. Certainendogenously expressed RNA molecules form hairpin structures containingan imperfect duplex portion in which the duplex is interrupted by one ormore mismatches and/or bulges. These hairpin structures are processedintracellularly to yield single-stranded RNA species referred to asknown as microRNAs (miRNAs), which mediate translational repression of atarget transcript to which they hybridize with less than perfectcomplementarity. siRNA-like molecules designed to mimic the structure ofmiRNA precursors have been shown to result in translational repressionof target genes when administered to mammalian cells.

Thus the exact mechanism by which a short RNAi agent inhibits geneexpression appears to depend, at least in part, on the structure of theduplex portion of the RNAi agent and/or the structure of the hybridformed by one strand of the RNAi agent and a target transcript. RNAimechanisms and the structure of various RNA molecules known to mediateRNAi, e.g., siRNA, shRNA, miRNA and their precursors, have beenextensively reviewed (see, e.g., Dykxhhorn et al., 2003, Nat. Rev. Mol.Cell Biol., 4:457; Hannon et al., 2004, Nature, 431:3761; and Meister etal., 2004, Nature, 431:343). It is to be expected that futuredevelopments will reveal additional mechanisms by which RNAi may beachieved and will reveal additional effective short RNAi agents. Anycurrently known or subsequently discovered short RNAi agents are withinthe scope of the present invention.

A short RNAi agent that is delivered according to the methods of theinvention and/or is present in a composition of the invention may bedesigned to silence any eukaryotic gene. The gene can be a mammaliangene, e.g., a human gene. The gene can be a wild type gene, a mutantgene, an allele of a polymorphic gene, etc. The gene can bedisease-associated, e.g., a gene whose over-expression,under-expression, or mutation is associated with or contributes todevelopment or progression of a disease. For example, the gene can beoncogene. The gene can encode a receptor or putative receptor for aninfectious agent such as a virus (see, e.g., Dykxhhorn et al., 2003,Nat. Rev. Mol. Cell Biol., 4:457 for specific examples).

In some embodiments, tRNAs are functional RNA molecules whose deliveryto eukaryotic cells can be monitored using the compositions and methodsof the invention. The structure and role of tRNAs in protein synthesisis well known (Soll and Rajbhandary, (eds.) tRNA: Structure,Biosynthesis, and Function, ASM Press, 1995). The cloverleaf shape oftRNAs includes several double-stranded “stems” that arise as a result offormation of intramolecular base pairs between complementary regions ofthe single tRNA strand. There is considerable interest in the synthesisof polypeptides that incorporate unnatural amino acids such as aminoacid analogs or labeled amino acids at particular positions within thepolypeptide chain (see, e.g., Köhrer and RajBhandary, “Proteins carryingone or more unnatural amino acids,” Chapter 33, In Ibba et al., (eds.),Aminoacyl-tRNA Synthetases, Landes Bioscience, 2004). One approach tosynthesizing such polypeptides is to deliver a suppressor tRNA that isaminoacylated with an unnatural amino acid to a cell that expresses anmRNA that encodes the desired polypeptide but includes a nonsense codonat one or more positions. The nonsense codon is recognized by thesuppressor tRNA, resulting in incorporation of the unnatural amino acidinto a polypeptide encoded by the mRNA (Kohrer et al., 2001, Proc. Natl.Acad. Sci., USA, 98:14310; and Kohrer et al., 2004, Nucleic Acids Res.,32:6200). However, as in the case of siRNA delivery, existing methods ofdelivering tRNAs to cells result in variable levels of delivery,complicating efforts to analyze such proteins and their effects oncells.

The invention contemplates the delivery of tRNAs, e.g., suppressortRNAs, and optically or magnetically detectable particles to eukaryoticcells in order to achieve the synthesis of proteins that incorporate anunnatural amino acid with which the tRNA is aminoacylated. The analysisof proteins that incorporate one or more unnatural amino acids has awide variety of applications. For example, incorporation of amino acidsmodified with detectable (e.g., fluorescent) moieties can allow thestudy of protein trafficking, secretion, etc., with minimal disturbanceto the native protein structure. Alternatively or additionally,incorporation of reactive moieties (e.g., photoactivatable and/orcross-linkable groups) can be used to identify protein interactionpartners and/or to define three-dimensional structural motifs.Incorporation of phosphorylated amino acids such as phosphotyrosine,phosphothreonine, or phosphoserine, or analogs thereof, into proteinscan be used to study cell signaling pathways and requirements.

In one embodiment of the invention, the functional RNA is a ribozyme. Aribozyme is designed to catalytically cleave target mRNA transcripts maybe used to prevent translation of a target mRNA and/or expression of atarget (see, e.g., PCT publication WO 90/11364; and Sarver et al., 1990,Science 247:1222).

In some embodiments, endogenous target gene expression may be reduced bytargeting deoxyribonucleotide sequences complementary to the regulatoryregion of the target gene (i.e., the target gene's promoter and/orenhancers) to form triple helical structures that prevent transcriptionof the target gene in target muscle cells in the body (see generally,Helene, 1991, Anticancer Drug Des. 6:569; Helene et al., 1992, Ann, N.Y.Acad. Sci. 660:27; and Maher, 1992, Bioassays 14:807).

RNAs such as RNAi agents, tRNAs, ribozymes, etc., for delivery toeukaryotic cells may be prepared according to any available techniqueincluding, but not limited to chemical synthesis, enzymatic synthesis,enzymatic or chemical cleavage of a longer precursor, etc. Methods ofsynthesizing RNA molecules are known in the art (see, e.g., Gait, M. J.(ed.) Oligonucleotide synthesis: a practical approach, Oxford(Oxfordshire), Washington, D.C.: IRL Press, 1984; and Herdewijn, P.(ed.) Oligonucleotide synthesis: methods and applications, Methods inMolecular Biology, v. 288 (Clifton, N.J.) Totowa, N.J.: Humana Press,2005). Short RNAi agents such as siRNAs are commercially available froma number of different suppliers. Pre-tested siRNAs targeted to a widevariety of different genes are available, e.g., from Ambion (Austin,Tex.), Dharmacon (Lafayette, Colo.), Sigma-Aldrich (St. Louis, Mo.).

When siRNAs are synthesized in vitro the two strands are typicallyallowed to hybridize before contacting them with cells. It will beappreciated that the resulting siRNA composition need not consistentirely of double-stranded (hybridized) molecules. For example, an RNAiagent commonly includes a small proportion of single-stranded RNA.Generally, at least approximately 50%, at least approximately 90%, atleast approximately 95%, or even at least approximately 99%-100% of theRNAs in an siRNA composition are double-stranded when contacted withcells. However, a composition containing a lower proportion of dsRNA maybe used, provided that it contains sufficient dsRNA to be effective.

Vectors

In some embodiments, a nucleic acid to be delivered is a vector. As usedherein, the term “vector” refers to a nucleic acid molecule (typically,but not necessarily, a DNA molecule) which can transport another nucleicacid to which it has been linked. A vector can achieve extra-chromosomalreplication and/or expression of nucleic acids to which they are linkedin a host cell (e.g. a cell targeted by targeted particles of thepresent invention). In some embodiments, a vector can achieveintegration into the genome of the host cell.

In some embodiments, vectors are used to direct protein and/or RNAexpression. In some embodiments, the protein and/or RNA to be expressedis not normally expressed by the cell. In some embodiments, the proteinand/or RNA to be expressed is normally expressed by the cell, but atlower levels than it is expressed when the vector has not been deliveredto the cell.

In some embodiments, a vector directs expression of any of the proteinsdescribed herein. In some embodiments, a vector directs expression of aprotein with anti-cancer activity. In some embodiments, a vector directsexpression of any of the functional RNAs described herein, such as RNAiagents, ribozymes, etc. In some embodiments, a vector directs expressionof a functional RNA with anti-cancer activity.

Protein Agents

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered may be a protein orpeptide. In certain embodiments, peptides range from about 5 to 500, 5to 250, 5 to 100, or 5 to 50, or 5 to 25 amino acids in size. Peptidesfrom panels of peptides comprising random sequences and/or sequenceswhich have been varied consistently to provide a maximally diverse panelof peptides may be used.

The terms “protein,” “polypeptide,” and “peptide” are usedinterchangeably herein, typically referring to a polypeptide having alength of less than about 500 to about 1000 amino acids. Polypeptidesmay contain L-amino acids, D-amino acids, or both and may contain any ofa variety of amino acid modifications or analogs known in the art.Useful modifications include, e.g., terminal acetylation, amidation,etc. In some embodiments, polypeptides may comprise standard aminoacids, non-standard amino acids, synthetic amino acids, and combinationsthereof, as described herein.

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered may be a peptide,hormone, erythropoietin, insulin, cytokine, antigen for vaccination,etc. In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered may be an antibodyand/or characteristic portion thereof. In some embodiments, antibodiesmay include, but are not limited to, polyclonal, monoclonal, chimeric(i.e. “humanized”), single chain (recombinant) antibodies. In someembodiments, antibodies may have reduced effector functions and/orbispecific molecules. In some embodiments, antibodies may include Fabfragments and/or fragments produced by a Fab expression library, asdescribed in further detail above.

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered may be an anti-canceragent. Exemplary protein anti-cancer agents are enzymes (e.g.L-asparaginase) and biological response modifiers, such as interferons(e.g. interferon-α), interleukins (e.g. interleukin 2; IL-2),granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), andgranulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). In someembodiments, a protein anti-cancer agent is an antibody orcharacteristic portion thereof which is cytotoxic to tumor cells.

Carbohydrate Agents

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered is a carbohydrate, suchas a carbohydrate that is associated with a protein (e.g. glycoprotein,proteogycan, etc.). A carbohydrate may be natural or synthetic. Acarbohydrate may also be a derivatized natural carbohydrate. In certainembodiments, a carbohydrate may be a simple or complex sugar. In certainembodiments, a carbohydrate is a monosaccharide, including but notlimited to glucose, fructose, galactose, and ribose. In certainembodiments, a carbohydrate is a disaccharide, including but not limitedto lactose, sucrose, maltose, trehalose, and cellobiose. In certainembodiments, a carbohydrate is a polysaccharide, including but notlimited to cellulose, microcrystalline cellulose, hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC), methylcellulose (MC), dextrose, dextran,glycogen, xanthan gum, gellan gum, starch, and pullulan. In certainembodiments, a carbohydrate is a sugar alcohol, including but notlimited to mannitol, sorbitol, xylitol, erythritol, malitol, andlactitol.

Lipid Agents

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered is a lipid, such as alipid that is associated with a protein (e.g. lipoprotein). Exemplarylipids that may be used in accordance with the present inventioninclude, but are not limited to, oils, fatty acids, saturated fattyacid, unsaturated fatty acids, essential fatty acids, cis fatty acids,trans fatty acids, glycerides, monoglycerides, diglycerides,triglycerides, hormones, steroids (e.g., cholesterol, bile acids),vitamins (e.g. vitamin E), phospholipids, sphingolipids, andlipoproteins.

In some embodiments, the lipid may comprise one or more fatty acidgroups or salts thereof. In some embodiments, the fatty acid group maycomprise digestible, long chain (e.g., C₈-C₅₀), substituted orunsubstituted hydrocarbons. In some embodiments, the fatty acid groupmay be a C₁₀-C₂₀ fatty acid or salt thereof. In some embodiments, thefatty acid group may be a C₁₅-C₂₀ fatty acid or salt thereof. In someembodiments, the fatty acid group may be a C₁₅-C₂₅ fatty acid or saltthereof. In some embodiments, the fatty acid group may be unsaturated.In some embodiments, the fatty acid group may be monounsaturated. Insome embodiments, the fatty acid group may be polyunsaturated. In someembodiments, a double bond of an unsaturated fatty acid group may be inthe cis conformation. In some embodiments, a double bond of anunsaturated fatty acid may be in the trans conformation.

In some embodiments, the fatty acid group may be one or more of butyric,caproic, caprylic, capric, lauric, myristic, palmitic, stearic,arachidic, behenic, or lignoceric acid. In some embodiments, the fattyacid group may be one or more of palmitoleic, oleic, vaccenic, linoleic,alpha-linolenic, gamma-linoleic, arachidonic, gadoleic, arachidonic,eicosapentaenoic, docosahexaenoic, or erucic acid.

Diagnostic Agents

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered is a diagnostic agent. Insome embodiments, diagnostic agents include gases; commerciallyavailable imaging agents used in positron emissions tomography (PET),computer assisted tomography (CAT), single photon emission computerizedtomography, x-ray, fluoroscopy, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI);anti-emetics; and contrast agents. Examples of suitable materials foruse as contrast agents in MRI include gadolinium chelates, as well asiron, magnesium, manganese, copper, and chromium. Examples of materialsuseful for CAT and x-ray imaging include iodine-based materials.

In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles may comprise adiagnostic agent used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), such as ironoxide particles or gadolinium complexes. Gadolinium complexes that havebeen approved for clinical use include gadolinium chelates with DTPA,DTPA-BMA, DOTA and HP-DO3A (reviewed in Aime et al., 1998, ChemicalSociety Reviews, 27:19).

In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles may compriseradionuclides as therapeutic and/or diagnostic agents. Among theradionuclides used, gamma-emitters, positron-emitters, and X-rayemitters are suitable for diagnostic and/or therapy, while beta emittersand alpha-emitters may also be used for therapy. Suitable radionuclidesfor forming the targeted particle of the invention include, but are notlimited to, ¹²³I, ¹²⁵I, ¹³⁰I, ¹³¹I, ¹³³I, ¹³⁵I, ⁴⁷Sc, ⁷²As, ⁷²Se, ⁹⁰Y,⁸⁸Y, ⁹⁷Ru, ¹⁰⁰Pd, ¹⁰¹mRh, ¹¹⁹Sb, ¹²⁸Ba, ¹⁹⁷Hg, ²¹¹At, ²¹²Bi, ²¹²Pb,¹⁰⁹Pd, ¹¹¹In, ⁶⁷Ga, ⁶⁸Ga, ⁶⁷Cu, ⁷⁵Br, ⁷⁷Br, ⁹⁹mTc, ¹⁴C, ¹³N, ¹⁵O, ³²P,³³P, and ¹⁸F.

In some embodiments, a diagnostic agent may be a fluorescent,luminescent, or magnetic moiety. In some embodiments, a detectablemoiety such as a fluorescent or luminescent dye, etc., is entrapped,embedded, or encapsulated by a particle core and/or coating layer.

Fluorescent and luminescent moieties include a variety of differentorganic or inorganic small molecules commonly referred to as “dyes,”“labels,” or “indicators.” Examples include fluorescein, rhodamine,acridine dyes, Alexa dyes, cyanine dyes, etc. Fluorescent andluminescent moieties may include a variety of naturally occurringproteins and derivatives thereof, e.g., genetically engineered variants.For example, fluorescent proteins include green fluorescent protein(GFP), enhanced GFP, red, blue, yellow, cyan, and sapphire fluorescentproteins, reef coral fluorescent protein, etc. Luminescent proteinsinclude luciferase, aequorin and derivatives thereof. Numerousfluorescent and luminescent dyes and proteins are known in the art (see,e.g., U.S. Patent Publication 2004/0067503; Valeur, B., “MolecularFluorescence: Principles and Applications,” John Wiley and Sons, 2002;Handbook of Fluorescent Probes and Research Products, Molecular Probes,9^(th) edition, 2002; and The Handbook—A Guide to Fluorescent Probes andLabeling Technologies, Invitrogen, 10^(th) edition, available at theInvitrogen web site).

Prophylactic Agents

In some embodiments, the agent to be delivered is a prophylactic agent.In some embodiments, prophylactic agents include vaccines. Vaccines maycomprise isolated proteins or peptides, inactivated organisms andviruses, dead organisms and virus, genetically altered organisms orviruses, and cell extracts. Prophylactic agents may be combined withinterleukins, interferon, cytokines, and adjuvants such as choleratoxin, alum, Freund's adjuvant, etc. Prophylactic agents may includeantigens of such bacterial organisms as Streptococccus pnuemoniae,Haemophilus influenzae, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyrogenes,Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus anthracis,Clostridium tetani, Clostridium botulinum, Clostridium perfringens,Neisseria meningitidis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Streptococcus mutans,Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi, Haemophilus parainfluenzae,Bordetella pertussis, Francisella tularensis, Yersinia pestis, Vibriocholerae, Legionella pneumophila, Mycobacterium tuberculosis,Mycobacterium leprae, Treponema pallidum, Leptospirosis interrogans,Borrelia burgdorferi, Camphylobacter jejuni, and the like; antigens ofsuch viruses as smallpox, influenza A and B, respiratory syncytialvirus, parainfluenza, measles, HIV, varicella-zoster, herpes simplex 1and 2, cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Ban virus, rotavirus, rhinovirus,adenovirus, papillomavirus, poliovirus, mumps, rabies, rubella,coxsackieviruses, equine encephalitis, Japanese encephalitis, yellowfever, Rift Valley fever, hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E virus, and thelike; antigens of fungal, protozoan, and parasitic organisms such asCryptococcus neoformans, Histoplasma capsulatum, Candida albicans,Candida tropicalis, Nocardia asteroides, Rickettsia ricketsii,Rickettsia typhi, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Chlamydial psittaci, Chlamydialtrachomatis, Plasmodium falciparum, Trypanosoma brucei, Entamoebahistolytica, Toxoplasma gondii, Trichomonas vaginalis, Schistosomamansoni, and the like. These antigens may be in the form of whole killedorganisms, peptides, proteins, glycoproteins, carbohydrates, orcombinations thereof.

Nutraceutical Agents

In some embodiments, the therapeutic agent to be delivered is anutraceutical agent. In some embodiments, the nutraceutical agentprovides basic nutritional value, provides health or medical benefits,and/or is a dietary supplement. In some embodiments, the nutraceuticalagent is a vitamin (e.g. vitamins A, B, C, D, E, K, etc.), mineral (e.g.iron, magnesium, potassium, calcium, etc.), or essential amino acid(e.g. lysine, glutamine, leucine, etc.).

In some embodiments, nutraceutical agents may include plant or animalextracts, such as fatty acids and/or omega-3 fatty acids (e.g. DHA orARA), fruit and vegetable extracts, lutein, phosphatidylserine, lipoidacid, melatonin, glucosamine, chondroitin, aloe vera, guggul, green tea,lycopene, whole foods, food additives, herbs, phytonutrients,antioxidants, flavonoid constituents of fruits, evening primrose oil,flaxseeds, fish and marine animal oils (e.g. cod liver oil), andprobiotics.

Exemplary nutraceutical agents and dietary supplements are disclosed,for example, in Roberts et al., (Nutriceuticals: The CompleteEncyclopedia of Supplements, Herbs, Vitamins, and Healing Foods,American Nutriceutical Association, 2001). Nutraceutical agents anddietary supplements are also disclosed in Physicians' Desk Reference forNutritional Supplements, 1st Ed. (2001) and The Physicians' DeskReference for Herbal Medicines, 1st Ed. (2001).

Those skilled in the art will recognize that this is an exemplary, notcomprehensive, list of therapeutic agents that can be delivered usingthe targeted particles of the present invention. Any therapeutic agentmay be associated with particles for targeted delivery in accordancewith the present invention.

Production of Targeted Particles

In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles comprise a particleand one or more targeting moieties (e.g. aptamers). In certainembodiments, inventive targeted particles comprise a particle, one ormore targeting moieties, and one or more therapeutic agents to bedelivered.

Inventive targeted particles may be manufactured using any availablemethod. When associating nucleic acid targeting moieties to particles,it is desirable to have a particle which can be efficiently linked to anegatively charged nucleic acid ligand using simple chemistry withoutadversely affecting the 3-dimensional characteristic and conformation ofthe nucleic acid ligand. It is desirable that the targeted particleshould be able to avoid uptake by the mononuclear phagocytic systemafter systemic administration so that it is able to reach specifictissues and cells in the body.

In some embodiments, therapeutic agents are not covalently associatedwith a particle. For example, particles may comprise polymers, andtherapeutic agents may be associated with the surface of, encapsulatedwithin, and/or distributed throughout the polymer of an inventiveparticle. Therapeutic agents are released by diffusion, degradation ofthe particle, and/or combination thereof. In some embodiments, polymersdegrade by bulk erosion. In some embodiments, polymers degrade bysurface erosion.

In some embodiments, therapeutic agents are covalently associated with aparticle. For such targeted particles, release and delivery of thetherapeutic agent to a target site occurs by disrupting the association.For example, if a therapeutic agent is associated with a particle by acleavable linker, the therapeutic agent is released and delivered to thetarget site upon cleavage of the linker.

In some embodiments, targeting moieties are not covalently associatedwith a particle. For example, particles may comprise polymers, andtargeting moieties may be associated with the surface of, encapsulatedwithin, surrounded by, and/or distributed throughout the polymer of aninventive particle. In some embodiments, targeting moieties arephysically associated with a particle.

Physical association can be achieved in a variety of different ways.Physical association may be covalent or non-covalent. The particle,targeting moiety, and/or therapeutic agent may be directly associatedwith one another, e.g., by one or more covalent bonds, or may beassociated by means of one or more linkers. In one embodiment, a linkerforms one or more covalent or non-covalent bonds with the particle andone or more covalent or non-covalent bonds with the targeting moiety,thereby attaching them to one another. In some embodiments, a firstlinker forms a covalent or non-covalent bond with the particle and asecond linker forms a covalent or non-covalent bond with the targetingmoiety. The two linkers form one or more covalent or non-covalentbond(s) with each other.

In one embodiment, the linker forms one or more covalent or non-covalentbonds with the particle and one or more covalent or non-covalent bondswith the therapeutic agent, thereby attaching them to one another. Insome embodiments, a first linker forms a covalent or non-covalent bondwith the particle and a second linker forms a covalent or non-covalentbond with the therapeutic agent. The two linkers form one or morecovalent or non-covalent bond(s) with each other.

In one embodiment, the linker forms one or more covalent or non-covalentbonds with the therapeutic agent and one or more covalent ornon-covalent bonds with the targeting moiety, thereby attaching them toone another. In some embodiments, a first linker forms a covalent ornon-covalent bond with the therapeutic agent and a second linker forms acovalent or non-covalent bond with the targeting moiety. The two linkersform one or more covalent or non-covalent bond(s) with each other.

Any suitable linker can be used in accordance with the presentinvention. Linkers may be used to form amide linkages, ester linkages,disulfide linkages, etc. Linkers may contain carbon atoms or heteroatoms(e.g., nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, etc.). Typically, linkers are 1 to 50atoms long, 1 to 40 atoms long, 1 to 25 atoms long, 1 to 20 atoms long,1 to 15 atoms long, 1 to 10 atoms long, or 1 to 10 atoms long. Linkersmay be substituted with various substituents including, but not limitedto, hydrogen atoms, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynl, amino, alkylamino,dialkylamino, trialkylamino, hydroxyl, alkoxy, halogen, aryl,heterocyclic, aromatic heterocyclic, cyano, amide, carbamoyl, carboxylicacid, ester, thioether, alkylthioether, thiol, and ureido groups. Aswould be appreciated by one of skill in this art, each of these groupsmay in turn be substituted.

In some embodiments, a linker is an aliphatic or heteroaliphatic linker.In some embodiments, the linker is a polyalkyl linker. In certainembodiments, the linker is a polyether linker. In certain embodiments,the linker is a polyethylene linker. In certain specific embodiments,the linker is a polyethylene glycol (PEG) linker.

In some embodiments, the linker is a cleavable linker. To give but a fewexamples, cleavable linkers include protease cleavable peptide linkers,nuclease sensitive nucleic acid linkers, lipase sensitive lipid linkers,glycosidase sensitive carbohydrate linkers, pH sensitive linkers,hypoxia sensitive linkers, photo-cleavable linkers, heat-labile linkers,enzyme cleavable linkers (e.g. esterase cleavable linker),ultrasound-sensitive linkers, x-ray cleavable linkers, etc. In someembodiments, the linker is not a cleavable linker.

Any of a variety of methods can be used to associate a linker with aparticle. General strategies include passive adsorption (e.g., viaelectrostatic interactions), multivalent chelation, high affinitynon-covalent binding between members of a specific binding pair,covalent bond formation, etc. (Gao et al., 2005, Curr. Op. Biotechnol.,16:63). In some embodiments, click chemistry can be used to associate alinker with a particle (e.g. Diels-Alder reaction, Huigsen 1,3-dipolarcycloaddition, nucleophilic substitution, carbonyl chemistry,epoxidation, dihydroxylation, etc.).

A bifunctional cross-linking reagent can be employed. Such reagentscontain two reactive groups, thereby providing a means of covalentlyassociating two target groups. The reactive groups in a chemicalcross-linking reagent typically belong to various classes of functionalgroups such as succinimidyl esters, maleimides, and pyridyldisulfides.Exemplary cross-linking agents include, e.g., carbodiimides,N-hydroxysuccinimidyl-4-azidosalicylic acid (NHS-ASA), dimethylpimelimidate dihydrochloride (DMP), dimethylsuberimidate (DMS),3,3′-dithiobispropionimidate (DTBP), N-Succinimidyl3-[2-pyridyldithio]-propionamido (SPDP), succimidyl α-methylbutanoate,biotinamidohexanoyl-6-amino-hexanoic acid N-hydroxy-succinimide ester(SMCC),succinimidyl-[(N-maleimidopropionamido)-dodecaethyleneglycol]ester(NHS-PEO12), etc. For example, carbodiimide-mediated amide formation andactive ester maleimide-mediated amine and sulfhydryl coupling are widelyused approaches.

Common schemes for forming a targeted particle involve the coupling ofan amine group on one molecule to a thiol group on a second molecule,sometimes by a two- or three-step reaction sequence. A thiol-containingmolecule may be reacted with an amine-containing molecule using aheterobifunctional cross-linking reagent, e.g., a reagent containingboth a succinimidyl ester and either a maleimide, a pyridyldisulfide, oran iodoacetamide. Amine—carboxylic acid and thiol—carboxylic acidcross-linking, maleimide-sulfhydryl coupling chemistries (e.g., themaleimidobenzoyl-N-hydroxysuccinimide ester (MBS) method), etc., may beused. Polypeptides can conveniently be attached to particles via amineor thiol groups in lysine or cysteine side chains respectively, or by anN-terminal amino group. Nucleic acids such as RNAs can be synthesizedwith a terminal amino group. A variety of coupling reagents (e.g.,succinimidyl 3-(2-pyridyldithio)propionate (SPDP) andsulfosuccinimidyl-4-(N-maleimidomethyl)cyclohexane-1-carboxylate(sulfo-SMCC) may be used to associatethe various components of targetedparticles. Particles can be prepared with functional groups, e.g., amineor carboxyl groups, available at the surface to facilitate associationwith a biomolecule.

Non-covalent specific binding interactions can be employed. For example,either a particle or a biomolecule can be functionalized with biotinwith the other being functionalized with streptavidin. These twomoieties specifically bind to each other non-covalently and with a highaffinity, thereby associating the particle and the biomolecule. Otherspecific binding pairs could be similarly used. Alternately,histidine-tagged biomolecules can be associated with particlesconjugated to nickel-nitrolotriaceteic acid (Ni-NTA).

Any biomolecule to be attached to a particle, targeting moiety, and/ortherapeutic agent. The spacer can be, for example, a short peptidechain, e.g., between 1 and 10 amino acids in length, e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4,or 5 amino acids in length, a nucleic acid, an alkyl chain, etc.

For additional general information on association and/or conjugationmethods and cross-linkers, see the journal Bioconjugate Chemistry,published by the American Chemical Society, Columbus Ohio, PO Box 3337,Columbus, Ohio, 43210; “Cross-Linking,” Pierce Chemical TechnicalLibrary, available at the Pierce web site and originally published inthe 1994-95 Pierce Catalog, and references cited therein; Wong S S,Chemistry of Protein Conjugation and Cross-linking, CRC PressPublishers, Boca Raton, 1991; and Hermanson, G. T., BioconjugateTechniques, Academic Press, Inc., San Diego, 1996.

Alternatively or additionally, particles can be attached to targetingmoieties directly or indirectly via non-covalent interactions.Non-covalent interactions include but are not limited to chargeinteractions, affinity interactions, metal coordination, physicaladsorption, host-guest interactions, hydrophobic interactions, TTstacking interactions, hydrogen bonding interactions, van der Waalsinteractions, magnetic interactions, electrostatic interactions,dipole-dipole interactions, etc.

In some embodiments, a particle may be associated with a targetingmoiety via charge interactions. For example, a particle may have acationic surface or may be reacted with a cationic polymer, such aspoly(lysine) or poly(ethylene imine), to provide a cationic surface. Theparticle surface can then bind via charge interactions with a negativelycharged nucleic acid ligand. One end of the nucleic acid ligand is,typically, attached to a negatively charged polymer (e.g., apoly(carboxylic acid)) or an additional oligonucleotide sequence thatcan interact with the cationic polymer surface without disrupting thebinding affinity of the nucleic acid ligand for its target.

In some embodiments, a particle may be associated with a targetingmoiety and/or a therapeutic agent to be delivered via affinityinteractions. For example, biotin may be attached to the surface of thecontrolled release polymer system and streptavidin may be attached tothe nucleic acid ligand; or conversely, biotin may be attached to thenucleic acid ligand and the streptavidin may be attached to the surfaceof the controlled release polymer system. The biotin group andstreptavidin are typically attached to the controlled release polymersystem or to the nucleic acid ligand via a linker, such as an alkylenelinker or a polyether linker. Biotin and streptavidin bind via affinityinteractions, thereby binding the controlled release polymer system tothe nucleic acid ligand.

In some embodiments, a particle may be associated with a targetingmoiety and/or a therapeutic agent to be delivered via metalcoordination. For example, a polyhistidine may be attached to one end ofthe nucleic acid ligand, and a nitrilotriacetic acid can be attached tothe surface of the controlled release polymer system. A metal, such asNi²⁺, will chelate the polyhistidine and the nitrilotriacetic acid,thereby binding the nucleic acid ligand to the controlled releasepolymer system.

In some embodiments, a particle may be associated with a targetingmoiety and/or a therapeutic agent to be delivered via physicaladsorption. For example, a hydrophobic tail, such as polymethacrylate oran alkyl group having at least about 10 carbons, may be attached to oneend of the nucleic acid ligand. The hydrophobic tail will adsorb ontothe surface of a hydrophobic controlled release polymer system, such asa controlled release polymer system made of or coated with apolyorthoester, polysebacic anhydride, or polycaprolactone, therebybinding the nucleic acid ligand to the controlled release polymersystem.

In some embodiments, a particle may be associated with a targetingmoiety and/or a therapeutic agent to be delivered via host-guestinteractions. For example, a macrocyclic host, such as cucurbituril orcyclodextrin, may be attached to the surface of the controlled releasepolymer system and a guest group, such as an alkyl group, a polyethyleneglycol, or a diaminoalkyl group, may be attached to the nucleic acidligand; or conversely, the host group may be attached to the nucleicacid ligand and the guest group may be attached to the surface of thecontrolled release polymer system. In one embodiment, the host and/orthe guest molecule may be attached to the nucleic acid ligand or thecontrolled release polymer system via a linker, such as an alkylenelinker or a polyether linker.

In some embodiments, a particle may be associated with a targetingmoiety and/or a therapeutic agent to be delivered via hydrogen bondinginteractions. For example, an oligonucleotide having a particularsequence may be attached to the surface of the controlled releasepolymer system, and an essentially complementary sequence may beattached to one or both ends of the nucleic acid ligand such that itdoes not disrupt the binding affinity of the nucleic acid ligand for itstarget. The nucleic acid ligand will then bind to the controlled releasepolymer system via complementary base pairing with the oligonucleotideattached to the controlled release polymer system. Two oligonucleotidesare essentially complimentary if about 80% of the nucleic acid bases onone oligonucleotide form hydrogen bonds via an oligonucleotide basepairing system, such as Watson-Crick base pairing, reverse Watson-Crickbase pairing, Hoogsten base pairing, etc., with a base on the secondoligonucleotide. Typically, it is desirable for an oligonucleotidesequence attached to the controlled release polymer system to form atleast about 6 complementary base pairs with a complementaryoligonucleotide attached to the nucleic acid ligand.

It is to be understood that the compositions of the invention can bemade in any suitable manner, and the invention is in no way limited tocompositions that can be produced using the methods described herein.Selection of an appropriate method may require attention to theproperties of the particular moieties being associated.

If desired, various methods may be used to separate targeted particleswith an attached targeting moiety and/or therapeutic agent from targetedparticles to which the targeting moiety and/or therapeutic agent has notbecome attached, or to separate targeted particles having differentnumbers of targeting moieties, or therapeutic agents attached thereto.For example, size exclusion chromatography, agarose gel electrophoresis,or filtration can be used to separate populations of targeted particleshaving different numbers of moieties attached thereto and/or to separatetargeted particles from other entities. Some methods includesize-exclusion or anion-exchange chromatography.

Any method may be used to determine whether targeted particle aggregateshave formed, including measuring extinction coefficients, atomic forcemicroscopy (AFM), etc. An extinction coefficient, generally speaking, isa measure of a substance's turbidity and/or opacity. If EM radiation canpass through a substance very easily, the substance has a low extinctioncoefficient. Conversely, if EM radiation hardly penetrates a substance,but rather quickly becomes “extinct” within it, the extinctioncoefficient is high. For example, to determine whether targeted particleaggregates have formed, EM radiation is directed toward and allowed topass through a sample. If the sample contains primarily targetedparticle aggregates, EM radiation will deflect and scatter in a patternthat is different from the pattern produced by a sample containingprimarily individual targeted particles.

In general, AFM utilizes a high-resolution type of scanning probemicroscope and attains resolution of fractions of an Angstrom. Themicroscope has a microscale cantilever with a sharp tip (probe) at itsend that is used to scan a specimen surface. The cantilever isfrequently silicon or silicon nitride with a tip radius of curvature onthe order of nanometers. When the tip is brought into proximity of asample surface, forces between the tip and the sample lead to adeflection of the cantilever according to Hooke's law. Typically, afeedback mechanism is employed to adjust the tip-to-sample distance tomaintain a constant force between the tip and the sample. Samples areusually spread in a thin layer across a surface (e.g. mica), which ismounted on a piezoelectric tube that can move the sample in the zdirection for maintaining a constant force, and the x and y directionsfor scanning the sample.

In general, forces that are measured in AFM may include mechanicalcontact force, Van der Waals forces, capillary forces, chemical bonding,electrostatic forces, magnetic forces, Casimir forces, solvation forces,etc. Typically, deflection is measured using a laser spot reflected fromthe top of the cantilever into an array of photodiodes. Alternatively oradditionally, deflection can be measured using optical interferometry,capacitive sensing, or piezoresistive AFM probes.

Therapeutic Applications

The compositions and methods described herein can be used for thetreatment and/or diagnosis of any disease, disorder, and/or conditionwhich is associated with a tissue specific and/or cell type specificmarker. Subjects include, but are not limited to, humans and/or otherprimates; mammals, including commercially relevant mammals such ascattle, pigs, horses, sheep, cats, and/or dogs; and/or birds, includingcommercially relevant birds such as chickens, ducks, geese, and/orturkeys.

Methods of Treatment

In some embodiments, targeted particles in accordance with the presentinvention may be used to treat, alleviate, ameliorate, relieve, delayonset of, inhibit progression of, reduce severity of, and/or reduceincidence of one or more symptoms or features of a disease, disorder,and/or condition. In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles maybe used to treat cancer. In certain embodiments, inventive targetedparticles may be used to treat prostate cancer.

Cancer can be associated with a variety of physical symptoms. Symptomsof cancer generally depend on the type and location of the tumor. Forexample, lung cancer can cause coughing, shortness of breath, and chestpain, while colon cancer often causes diarrhea, constipation, and bloodin the stool. However, to give but a few examples, the followingsymptoms are often generally associated with many cancers: fever,chills, night sweats, cough, dyspnea, weight loss, loss of appetite,anorexia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, anemia, jaundice, hepatomegaly,hemoptysis, fatigue, malaise, cognitive dysfunction, depression,hormonal disturbances, neutropenia, pain, non-healing sores, enlargedlymph nodes, peripheral neuropathy, and sexual dysfunction.

In one aspect of the invention, a method for the treatment of cancer(e.g. prostate cancer) is provided. In some embodiments, the treatmentof cancer comprises administering a therapeutically effective amount ofinventive targeted particles to a subject in need thereof, in suchamounts and for such time as is necessary to achieve the desired result.In certain embodiments of the present invention a “therapeuticallyeffective amount” of an inventive targeted particle is that amounteffective for treating, alleviating, ameliorating, relieving, delayingonset of, inhibiting progression of, reducing severity of, and/orreducing incidence of one or more symptoms or features of cancer.

In one aspect of the invention, a method for administering inventivecompositions to a subject suffering from cancer (e.g. prostate cancer)is provided. In some embodiments, such methods comprise administering atherapeutically effective amount of inventive targeted particles to asubject in such amounts and for such time as is necessary to achieve thedesired result (i.e. treatment of cancer). In certain embodiments of thepresent invention a “therapeutically effective amount” of an inventivetargeted particle is that amount effective for treating, alleviating,ameliorating, relieving, delaying onset of, inhibiting progression of,reducing severity of, and/or reducing incidence of one or more symptomsor features of cancer.

Inventive therapeutic protocols involve administering a therapeuticallyeffective amount of an inventive targeted particle to a healthyindividual (i.e. a subject who does not display any symptoms of cancerand/or who has not been diagnosed with cancer). For example, healthyindividuals may be “immunized” with an inventive targeted particle priorto development of cancer and/or onset of symptoms of cancer; at riskindividuals (e.g., patients who have a family history of cancer;patients carrying one or more genetic mutations associated withdevelopment of cancer; patients having a genetic polymorphism associatedwith development of cancer; patients infected by a virus associated withdevelopment of cancer; patients with habits and/or lifestyles associatedwith development of cancer; etc.) can be treated substantiallycontemporaneously with (e.g., within 48 hours, within 24 hours, orwithin 12 hours of) the onset of symptoms of cancer. Of courseindividuals known to have cancer may receive inventive treatment at anytime.

Methods of Diagnosis

In some embodiments, targeted particles of the present invention may beused to diagnose a disease, disorder, and/or condition. In someembodiments, inventive targeted particles may be used to diagnosecancer. In certain embodiments, inventive targeted particles may be usedto diagnose prostate cancer. In some embodiments, such methods ofdiagnosis may involve the use of inventive targeted particles tophysically detect and/or locate a tumor within the body of a subject.

In one aspect of the invention, a method for the diagnosis of cancer(e.g. prostate cancer) is provided. In some embodiments, the diagnosisof cancer comprises administering a therapeutically effective amount ofinventive targeted particles to a subject, in such amounts and for suchtime as is necessary to achieve the desired result. In certainembodiments of the present invention a “therapeutically effectiveamount” of an inventive targeted particle is that amount effective fordiagnosing cancer.

In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles comprise particleswhich have intrinsically detectable properties (described in furtherdetail below). In some embodiments, inventive targeted particlescomprise particles which do not have intrinsically detectable propertiesbut are associated with a substance which is detectable.

A. Targeted Particles Comprising a Detectable Agent

In certain embodiments of the invention, the particle comprises a bulkmaterial that is not intrinsically detectable. The particle comprisesone or more fluorescent, luminescent, or magnetic moieties. For example,the particle may comprise fluorescent or luminescent substances orsmaller particles of a magnetic material. In some embodiments, anoptically detectable moiety such as a fluorescent or luminescent dye,etc., is entrapped, embedded, or encapsulated by a particle core and/orcoating layer. Fluorescent and luminescent moieties include a variety ofdifferent organic or inorganic small molecules, as described in furtherdetail above.

Fluorescence or luminescence can be detected using any approach known inthe art including, but not limited to, spectrometry, fluorescencemicroscopy, flow cytometry, etc. Spectrofluorometers and microplatereaders are typically used to measure average properties of a samplewhile fluorescence microscopes resolve fluorescence as a function ofspatial coordinates in two or three dimensions for microscopic objects(e.g., less than approximately 0.1 mm diameter). Microscope-basedsystems are thus suitable for detecting and optionally quantitatingparticles inside individual cells.

Flow cytometry measures properties such as light scattering and/orfluorescence on individual cells in a flowing stream, allowingsubpopulations within a sample to be identified, analyzed, andoptionally quantitated (see, e.g., Mattheakis et al., 2004, AnalyticalBiochemistry, 327:200). Multiparameter flow cytometers are available. Incertain embodiments of the invention, laser scanning cytometery is used(Kamentsky, 2001, Methods Cell Biol., 63:51). Laser scanning cytometrycan provide equivalent data to a flow cytometer but is typically appliedto cells on a solid support such as a slide. It allows light scatter andfluorescence measurements and records the position of each measurement.Cells of interest may be re-located, visualized, stained, analyzed,and/or photographed. Laser scanning cytometers are available, e.g., fromCompuCyte (Cambridge, Mass.).

In certain embodiments of the invention, an imaging system comprising anepifluorescence microscope equipped with a laser (e.g., a 488 nm argonlaser) for excitation and appropriate emission filter(s) is used. Thefilters should allow discrimination between different populations ofparticles used in the particular assay. For example, in one embodiment,the microscope is equipped with fifteen 10 nm bandpass filters spaced tocover portion of the spectrum between 520 and 660 nm, which would allowthe detection of a wide variety of different fluorescent particles.Fluorescence spectra can be obtained from populations of particles usinga standard UV/visible spectrometer.

B. Targeted Particles Comprising Particles with Intrinsically DetectableProperties

In some embodiments, particles have detectable optical and/or magneticproperties, though particles that may be detected by other approachescould be used. An optically detectable particle is one that can bedetected within a living cell using optical means compatible with cellviability. Optical detection is accomplished by detecting thescattering, emission, and/or absorption of light that falls within theoptical region of the spectrum, i.e., that portion of the spectrumextending from approximately 180 nm to several microns. Optionally asample containing cells is exposed to a source of electromagneticenergy. In some embodiments of the invention, absorption ofelectromagnetic energy (e.g., light of a given wavelength) by theparticle or a component thereof is followed by the emission of light atlonger wavelengths, and the emitted light is detected. In someembodiments, scattering of light by the particles is detected. Incertain embodiments of the invention, light falling within the visibleportion of the electromagnetic spectrum, i.e., the portion of thespectrum that is detectable by the human eye (approximately 400 nm toapproximately 700 nm) is detected. In some embodiments of the invention,light that falls within the infrared or ultraviolet region of thespectrum is detected.

An optical property can be a feature of an absorption, emission, orscattering spectrum or a change in a feature of an absorption, emission,or scattering spectrum. An optical property can be a visually detectablefeature such as, for example, color, apparent size, or visibility (i.e.simply whether or not the particle is visible under particularconditions). Features of a spectrum include, for example, peakwavelength or frequency (wavelength or frequency at which maximumemission, scattering intensity, extinction, absorption, etc. occurs),peak magnitude (e.g., peak emission value, peak scattering intensity,peak absorbance value, etc.), peak width at half height, or metricsderived from any of the foregoing such as ratio of peak magnitude topeak width. Certain spectra may contain multiple peaks, of which one istypically the major peak and has significantly greater intensity thanthe others. Each spectral peak has associated features. Typically, forany particular spectrum, spectral features such as peak wavelength orfrequency, peak magnitude, peak width at half height, etc., aredetermined with reference to the major peak. The features of each peak,number of peaks, separation between peaks, etc., can be considered to befeatures of the spectrum as a whole. The foregoing features can bemeasured as a function of the direction of polarization of lightilluminating the particles; thus polarization dependence can bemeasured. Features associated with hyper-Rayleigh scattering can bemeasured. Fluorescence detection can include detection of fluorescencemodes and any of the methods described herein.

Intrinsically fluorescent or luminescent particles, particles thatcomprise fluorescent or luminescent moieties, plasmon resonantparticles, and magnetic particles are among the detectable particlesthat are used in various embodiments of the invention. Such particlescan have a variety of different shapes including spheres, oblatespheroids, cylinders, shells, cubes, pyramids, rods (e.g., cylinders orelongated structures having a square or rectangular cross-section),tetrapods (particles having four leg-like appendages), triangles,prisms, etc. In general, the particles should have dimensions smallenough to allow their uptake by eukaryotic cells. Typically theparticles have a longest straight dimension (e.g., diameter) of 200 nmor less. In some embodiments, the particles have a diameter of 100 nm orless. Smaller particles, e.g., having diameters of 50 nm or less, e.g.,5-30 nm, are used in some embodiments of the invention. In someembodiments, the term “particle” encompasses atomic clusters, which havea typical diameter of 1 nm or less and generally contain from several(e.g., 3-4) up to several hundred atoms.

In certain embodiments of the invention, the particles can be quantumdots (QDs). QDs are bright, fluorescent nanocrystals with physicaldimensions small enough such that the effect of quantum confinementgives rise to unique optical and electronic properties. SemiconductorQDs are often composed of atoms from groups II-VI or III-V in theperiodic table, but other compositions are possible (see, e.g., Zheng etal., 2004, Phys. Rev. Lett., 93:7, describing gold QDs). By varyingtheir size and composition, the emission wavelength can be tuned (i.e.,adjusted in a predictable and controllable manner) from the blue to thenear infrared. QDs generally have a broad absorption spectrum and anarrow emission spectrum. Thus different QDs having distinguishableoptical properties (e.g., peak emission wavelength) can be excited usinga single source. QDs are brighter than most conventional fluorescentdyes by approximately 10-fold (Wu et al., 2003, Nat. Biotechnol., 21:41;and Gao et al., 2004, Nat. Biotechnol., 22:969) and have beensignificantly easier to detect than GFP among backgroundautofluorescence in vivo (Gao et al., 2004, Nat. Biotechnol., 22:969).Furthermore, QDs are less susceptible to photobleaching, fluorescingmore than 20 times longer than conventional fluorescent dyes undercontinuous mercury lamp exposure (Derfus et al., 2004, AdvancedMaterials, 16:961).

In certain embodiments of the invention, optically detectable particlesare metal particles. Metals of use in the particles include, but are notlimited to, gold, silver, iron, cobalt, zinc, cadmium, nickel,gadolinium, chromium, copper, manganese, palladium, tin, and alloysthereof. Oxides of any of these metals can be used.

Noble metals (e.g., gold, silver, copper, platinum, palladium) arepreferred for plasmon resonant particles, which are discussed in furtherdetail below. For example, gold, silver, or an alloy comprising gold,silver, and optionally one or more other metals can be used. Core/shellparticles (e.g., having a silver core with an outer shell of gold, orvice versa) can be used. Particles containing a metal core and anonmetallic inorganic or organic outer shell, or vice versa, can beused. In certain embodiments, the nonmetallic core or shell comprises adielectric material such as silica. Composite particles in which aplurality of metal particles are embedded or trapped in a nonmetal(e.g., a polymer or a silica shell) may be used. Hollow metal particles(e.g., hollow nanoshells) having an interior space or cavity are used insome embodiments. In some embodiments, a nanoshell comprising two ormore concentric hollow spheres is used. Such a particle optionallycomprises a core, e.g., made of a dielectric material.

In certain embodiments of the invention, at least 1%, or typically atleast 5% of the mass or volume of the particle or number of atoms in theparticle is contributed by metal atoms. In certain embodiments of theinvention, the amount of metal in the particle, or in a core or coatinglayer comprising a metal, ranges from approximately 5% to 100% by mass,volume, or number of atoms, or can assume any value or range between 5and 100%.

Certain metal particles, referred to as plasmon resonant particles,exhibit the well known phenomenon of plasmon resonance. When a metalparticle (usually made of a noble metal such as gold, silver, copper,platinum, etc.) is subjected to an external electric field, itsconduction electrons are displaced from their equilibrium positions withrespect to the nuclei, which in turn exert an attractive, restoringforce. If the electric field is oscillating (as in the case ofelectromagnetic radiation such as light), the result is a collectiveoscillation of the conduction electrons in the particle, known asplasmon resonance (Kelly et al., 2003, J. Phys. Chem. B., 107:668;Schultz et al., 2000, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 97:996; and Schultz,2003, Curr. Op. Biotechnol., 14:13). The plasmon resonance phenomenonresults in extremely efficient wavelength-dependent scattering andabsorption of light by the particles over particular bands offrequencies, often in the visible range. Scattering and absorption giverise to a number of distinctive optical properties that can be detectedusing various approaches including visually (i.e., by the naked eye orusing appropriate microscopic techniques) and/or by obtaining aspectrum, e.g., a scattering spectrum, extinction(scattering+absorption) spectrum, or absorption spectrum from theparticle(s).

Certain lanthanide ion-doped particles exhibit strong fluorescence andare of use in certain embodiments of the invention. A variety ofdifferent dopant molecules can be used. For example, fluorescenteuropium-doped yttrium vanadate (YVO₄) particles have been produced(Beaureparie et al., 2004, Nano Letters, 4:2079). These particles may besynthesized in water and are readily functionalized with biomolecules.

Magnetic particles are of use in the invention. “Magnetic particles”refers to magnetically responsive particles that contain one or moremetals or oxides or hydroxides thereof. Such particles typically reactto magnetic force resulting from a magnetic field. The field can attractor repel the particle towards or away from the source of the magneticfield, respectively, optionally causing acceleration or movement in adesired direction in space. A magnetically detectable particle is amagnetic particle that can be detected within a living cell as aconsequence of its magnetic properties. Magnetic particles may compriseone or more ferrimagnetic, ferromagnetic, paramagnetic, and/orsuperparamagnetic materials. Useful particles may be made entirely or inpart of one or more materials selected from the group consisting of:iron, cobalt, nickel, niobium, magnetic iron oxides, hydroxides such asmaghemite (γ-Fe₂O₃), magnetite (Fe₃O₄), feroxyhyte (FeO(OH)), doubleoxides or hydroxides of two- or three-valent iron with two- orthree-valent other metal ions such as those from the first row oftransition metals such as Co(II), Mn(II), Cu(II), Ni(II), Cr(III),Gd(III), Dy(III), Sm(III), mixtures of the afore-mentioned oxides orhydroxides, and mixtures of any of the foregoing. See, e.g., U.S. Pat.No. 5,916,539 for suitable synthesis methods for certain of theseparticles. Additional materials that may be used in magnetic particlesinclude yttrium, europium, and vanadium.

A magnetic particle may contain a magnetic material and one or morenonmagnetic materials, which may be a metal or a nonmetal. In certainembodiments of the invention, the particle is a composite particlecomprising an inner core or layer containing a first material and anouter layer or shell containing a second material, wherein at least oneof the materials is magnetic. Optionally both of the materials aremetals. In one embodiment, the particle is an iron oxide particle, e.g.,the particle has a core of iron oxide. Optionally the iron oxide ismonocrystalline. In one embodiment, the particle is a superparamagneticiron oxide particle, e.g., the particle has a core of superparamagneticiron oxide.

Detection of magnetic particles may be performed using any method knownin the art. For example, a magnetometer or a detector based on thephenomenon of magnetic resonance (NMR) can be employed. Superconductingquantum interference devices (SQUID), which use the properties ofelectron-pair wave coherence and Josephson junctions to detect verysmall magnetic fields can be used. Magnetic force microscopy or handheldmagnetic readers can be used. U.S. Patent Publication 2003/009029describes various suitable methods. Magnetic resonance microscopy offersone approach (Wind et al., 2000, J. Magn. Reson., 147:371).

In some embodiments, the use of magnetic particles allows for the use ofa magnet to position the targeted particle in the vicinity of the targetcell or tissue. For example, a targeted particle comprising a magneticparticle can be administered to a subject intravenously, and externalmagnets can be positioned so that a magnetic field is created within thebody at the site of a target tissue. The magnetic particle is then drawnto the magnetic field and retained there until the magnet is removed.

Pharmaceutical Compositions

The present invention provides novel targeted particles comprising: atherapeutically effective amount of a particle, one or more targetingmoieties (e.g. aptamers), and one or more therapeutic agents to bedelivered; and one or more pharmaceutically acceptable excipients. Insome embodiments, the present invention provides for pharmaceuticalcompositions comprising inventive targeted particles as describedherein. Such pharmaceutical compositions may optionally comprise one ormore additional therapeutically-active substances. In accordance withsome embodiments, a method of administering a pharmaceutical compositioncomprising inventive compositions to a subject in need thereof isprovided. In some embodiments, inventive compositions are administeredto humans. For the purposes of the present invention, the phrase “activeingredient” generally refers to an inventive targeted particlecomprising a particle, one or more targeting moieties (e.g. aptamers),and one or more therapeutic agents to be delivered.

Although the descriptions of pharmaceutical compositions provided hereinare principally directed to pharmaceutical compositions which aresuitable for administration to humans, it will be understood by theskilled artisan that such compositions are generally suitable foradministration to animals of all sorts. Modification of pharmaceuticalcompositions suitable for administration to humans in order to renderthe compositions suitable for administration to various animals is wellunderstood, and the ordinarily skilled veterinary pharmacologist candesign and/or perform such modification with merely ordinary, if any,experimentation. Subjects to which administration of the pharmaceuticalcompositions of the invention is contemplated include, but are notlimited to, humans and/or other primates; mammals, includingcommercially relevant mammals such as cattle, pigs, horses, sheep, cats,and/or dogs; and/or birds, including commercially relevant birds such aschickens, ducks, geese, and/or turkeys.

The formulations of the pharmaceutical compositions described herein maybe prepared by any method known or hereafter developed in the art ofpharmaceutics. In general, such preparatory methods include the step ofbringing the active ingredient into association with one or moreexcipients and/or one or more other accessory ingredients, and then, ifnecessary and/or desirable, shaping and/or packaging the product into adesired single- or multi-dose unit.

A pharmaceutical composition of the invention may be prepared, packaged,and/or sold in bulk, as a single unit dose, and/or as a plurality ofsingle unit doses. As used herein, a “unit dose” is discrete amount ofthe pharmaceutical composition comprising a predetermined amount of theactive ingredient. The amount of the active ingredient is generallyequal to the dosage of the active ingredient which would be administeredto a subject and/or a convenient fraction of such a dosage such as, forexample, one-half or one-third of such a dosage.

The relative amounts of the active ingredient, the pharmaceuticallyacceptable excipient(s), and/or any additional ingredients in apharmaceutical composition of the invention will vary, depending uponthe identity, size, and/or condition of the subject treated and furtherdepending upon the route by which the composition is to be administered.By way of example, the composition may comprise between 0.1% and 100%(w/w) active ingredient.

Pharmaceutical formulations of the present invention may additionallycomprise a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient, which, as used herein,includes any and all solvents, dispersion media, diluents, or otherliquid vehicles, dispersion or suspension aids, surface active agents,isotonic agents, thickening or emulsifying agents, preservatives, solidbinders, lubricants and the like, as suited to the particular dosageform desired. Remington's The Science and Practice of Pharmacy, 21^(st)Edition, A. R. Gennaro, (Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore, Md.,2006) discloses various excipients used in formulating pharmaceuticalcompositions and known techniques for the preparation thereof. Exceptinsofar as any conventional excipient is incompatible with a substanceor its derivatives, such as by producing any undesirable biologicaleffect or otherwise interacting in a deleterious manner with any othercomponent(s) of the pharmaceutical composition, its use is contemplatedto be within the scope of this invention.

In some embodiments, the pharmaceutically acceptable excipient is atleast 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100% pure. In some embodiments, theexcipient is approved for use in humans and for veterinary use. In someembodiments, the excipient is approved by United States Food and DrugAdministration. In some embodiments, the excipient is pharmaceuticalgrade. In some embodiments, the excipient meets the standards of theUnited States Pharmacopoeia (USP), the European Pharmacopoeia (EP), theBritish Pharmacopoeia, and/or the International Pharmacopoeia.

Pharmaceutically acceptable excipients used in the manufacture ofpharmaceutical compositions include, but are not limited to, inertdiluents, dispersing and/or granulating agents, surface active agentsand/or emulsifiers, disintegrating agents, binding agents,preservatives, buffering agents, lubricating agents, and/or oils. Suchexcipients may optionally be included in the inventive formulations.Excipients such as cocoa butter and suppository waxes, coloring agents,coating agents, sweetening, flavoring, and perfuming agents can bepresent in the composition, according to the judgment of the formulator.

Exemplary diluents include, but are not limited to, calcium carbonate,sodium carbonate, calcium phosphate, dicalcium phosphate, calciumsulfate, calcium hydrogen phosphate, sodium phosphate lactose, sucrose,cellulose, microcrystalline cellulose, kaolin, mannitol, sorbitol,inositol, sodium chloride, dry starch, cornstarch, powdered sugar, etc.,and combinations thereof

Exemplary granulating and/or dispersing agents include, but are notlimited to, potato starch, corn starch, tapioca starch, sodium starchglycolate, clays, alginic acid, guar gum, citrus pulp, agar, bentonite,cellulose and wood products, natural sponge, cation-exchange resins,calcium carbonate, silicates, sodium carbonate, cross-linkedpoly(vinyl-pyrrolidone) (crospovidone), sodium carboxymethyl starch(sodium starch glycolate), carboxymethyl cellulose, cross-linked sodiumcarboxymethyl cellulose (croscarmellose), methylcellulose,pregelatinized starch (starch 1500), microcrystalline starch, waterinsoluble starch, calcium carboxymethyl cellulose, magnesium aluminumsilicate (Veegum), sodium lauryl sulfate, quaternary ammonium compounds,etc., and combinations thereof.

Exemplary surface active agents and/or emulsifiers include, but are notlimited to, natural emulsifiers (e.g. acacia, agar, alginic acid, sodiumalginate, tragacanth, chondrux, cholesterol, xanthan, pectin, gelatin,egg yolk, casein, wool fat, cholesterol, wax, and lecithin), colloidalclays (e.g. bentonite [aluminum silicate] and Veegum [magnesium aluminumsilicate]), long chain amino acid derivatives, high molecular weightalcohols (e.g. stearyl alcohol, cetyl alcohol, oleyl alcohol, triacetinmonostearate, ethylene glycol distearate, glyceryl monostearate, andpropylene glycol monostearate, polyvinyl alcohol), carbomers (e.g.carboxy polymethylene, polyacrylic acid, acrylic acid polymer, andcarboxyvinyl polymer), carrageenan, cellulosic derivatives (e.g.carboxymethylcellulose sodium, powdered cellulose, hydroxymethylcellulose, hydroxypropyl cellulose, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose,methylcellulose), sorbitan fatty acid esters (e.g. polyoxyethylenesorbitan monolaurate [Tween 20], polyoxyethylene sorbitan [Tween 60],polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate [Tween 80], sorbitan monopalmitate[Span 40], sorbitan monostearate [Span 60], sorbitan tristearate [Span65], glyceryl monooleate, sorbitan monooleate [Span 80]),polyoxyethylene esters (e.g. polyoxyethylene monostearate [Myrj 45],polyoxyethylene hydrogenated castor oil, polyethoxylated castor oil,polyoxymethylene stearate, and Solutol), sucrose fatty acid esters,polyethylene glycol fatty acid esters (e.g. Cremophor), polyoxyethyleneethers, (e.g. polyoxyethylene lauryl ether [Brij 30]),poly(vinyl-pyrrolidone), diethylene glycol monolaurate, triethanolamineoleate, sodium oleate, potassium oleate, ethyl oleate, oleic acid, ethyllaurate, sodium lauryl sulfate, Pluronic F 68, Poloxamer 188,cetrimonium bromide, cetylpyridinium chloride, benzalkonium chloride,docusate sodium, etc. and/or combinations thereof.

Exemplary binding agents include, but are not limited to, starch (e.g.cornstarch and starch paste); gelatin; sugars (e.g. sucrose, glucose,dextrose, dextrin, molasses, lactose, lactitol, mannitol,); natural andsynthetic gums (e.g. acacia, sodium alginate, extract of Irish moss,panwar gum, ghatti gum, mucilage of isapol husks,carboxymethylcellulose, methylcellulose, ethylcellulose,hydroxyethylcellulose, hydroxypropyl cellulose, hydroxypropylmethylcellulose, microcrystalline cellulose, cellulose acetate,poly(vinyl-pyrrolidone), magnesium aluminum silicate (Veegum), and larcharabogalactan); alginates; polyethylene oxide; polyethylene glycol;inorganic calcium salts; silicic acid; polymethacrylates; waxes; water;alcohol; etc.; and combinations thereof.

Exemplary preservatives may include antioxidants, chelating agents,antimicrobial preservatives, antifungal preservatives, alcoholpreservatives, acidic preservatives, and other preservatives. Exemplaryantioxidants include, but are not limited to, alpha tocopherol, ascorbicacid, acorbyl palmitate, butylated hydroxyanisole, butylatedhydroxytoluene, monothioglycerol, potassium metabisulfite, propionicacid, propyl gallate, sodium ascorbate, sodium bisulfite, sodiummetabisulfite, and sodium sulfite. Exemplary chelating agents includeethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), citric acid monohydrate,disodium edetate, dipotassium edetate, edetic acid, fumaric acid, malicacid, phosphoric acid, sodium edetate, tartaric acid, and trisodiumedetate. Exemplary antimicrobial preservatives include, but are notlimited to, benzalkonium chloride, benzethonium chloride, benzylalcohol, bronopol, cetrimide, cetylpyridinium chloride, chlorhexidine,chlorobutanol, chlorocresol, chloroxylenol, cresol, ethyl alcohol,glycerin, hexetidine, imidurea, phenol, phenoxyethanol, phenylethylalcohol, phenylmercuric nitrate, propylene glycol, and thimerosal.Exemplary antifungal preservatives include, but are not limited to,butyl paraben, methyl paraben, ethyl paraben, propyl paraben, benzoicacid, hydroxybenzoic acid, potassium benzoate, potassium sorbate, sodiumbenzoate, sodium propionate, and sorbic acid. Exemplary alcoholpreservatives include, but are not limited to, ethanol, polyethyleneglycol, phenol, phenolic compounds, bisphenol, chlorobutanol,hydroxybenzoate, and phenylethyl alcohol. Exemplary acidic preservativesinclude, but are not limited to, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E,beta-carotene, citric acid, acetic acid, dehydroacetic acid, ascorbicacid, sorbic acid, and phytic acid. Other preservatives include, but arenot limited to, tocopherol, tocopherol acetate, deteroxime mesylate,cetrimide, butylated hydroxyanisol (BHA), butylated hydroxytoluened(BHT), ethylenediamine, sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), sodium lauryl ethersulfate (SLES), sodium bisulfite, sodium metabisulfite, potassiumsulfite, potassium metabisulfite, Glydant Plus, Phenonip, methylparaben,Germall 115, Germaben II, Neolone, Kathon, and Euxyl. In certainembodiments, the preservative is an anti-oxidant. In other embodiments,the preservative is a chelating agent.

Exemplary buffering agents include, but are not limited to, citratebuffer solutions, acetate buffer solutions, phosphate buffer solutions,ammonium chloride, calcium carbonate, calcium chloride, calcium citrate,calcium glubionate, calcium gluceptate, calcium gluconate, D-gluconicacid, calcium glycerophosphate, calcium lactate, propanoic acid, calciumlevulinate, pentanoic acid, dibasic calcium phosphate, phosphoric acid,tribasic calcium phosphate, calcium hydroxide phosphate, potassiumacetate, potassium chloride, potassium gluconate, potassium mixtures,dibasic potassium phosphate, monobasic potassium phosphate, potassiumphosphate mixtures, sodium acetate, sodium bicarbonate, sodium chloride,sodium citrate, sodium lactate, dibasic sodium phosphate, monobasicsodium phosphate, sodium phosphate mixtures, tromethamine, magnesiumhydroxide, aluminum hydroxide, alginic acid, pyrogen-free water,isotonic saline, Ringer's solution, ethyl alcohol, etc., andcombinations thereof.

Exemplary lubricating agents include, but are not limited to, magnesiumstearate, calcium stearate, stearic acid, silica, talc, malt, glycerylbehanate, hydrogenated vegetable oils, polyethylene glycol, sodiumbenzoate, sodium acetate, sodium chloride, leucine, magnesium laurylsulfate, sodium lauryl sulfate, etc., and combinations thereof.

Exemplary oils include, but are not limited to, almond, apricot kernel,avocado, babassu, bergamot, black current seed, borage, cade, camomile,canola, caraway, carnauba, castor, cinnamon, cocoa butter, coconut, codliver, coffee, corn, cotton seed, emu, eucalyptus, evening primrose,fish, flaxseed, geraniol, gourd, grape seed, hazel nut, hyssop,isopropyl myristate, jojoba, kukui nut, lavandin, lavender, lemon,litsea cubeba, macademia nut, mallow, mango seed, meadowfoam seed, mink,nutmeg, olive, orange, orange roughy, palm, palm kernel, peach kernel,peanut, poppy seed, pumpkin seed, rapeseed, rice bran, rosemary,safflower, sandalwood, sasquana, savoury, sea buckthorn, sesame, sheabutter, silicone, soybean, sunflower, tea tree, thistle, tsubaki,vetiver, walnut, and wheat germ oils. Exemplary oils include, but arenot limited to, butyl stearate, caprylic triglyceride, caprictriglyceride, cyclomethicone, diethyl sebacate, dimethicone 360,isopropyl myristate, mineral oil, octyldodecanol, oleyl alcohol,silicone oil, and combinations thereof.

Liquid dosage forms for oral and parenteral administration include, butare not limited to, pharmaceutically acceptable emulsions,microemulsions, solutions, suspensions, syrups and elixirs. In additionto the active ingredients, the liquid dosage forms may comprise inertdiluents commonly used in the art such as, for example, water or othersolvents, solubilizing agents and emulsifiers such as ethyl alcohol,isopropyl alcohol, ethyl carbonate, ethyl acetate, benzyl alcohol,benzyl benzoate, propylene glycol, 1,3-butylene glycol,dimethylformamide, oils (in particular, cottonseed, groundnut, corn,germ, olive, castor, and sesame oils), glycerol, tetrahydrofurfurylalcohol, polyethylene glycols and fatty acid esters of sorbitan, andmixtures thereof. Besides inert diluents, the oral compositions caninclude adjuvants such as wetting agents, emulsifying and suspendingagents, sweetening, flavoring, and perfuming agents. In certainembodiments for parenteral administration, the targeted particles of theinvention are mixed with solubilizing agents such as Cremophor,alcohols, oils, modified oils, glycols, polysorbates, cyclodextrins,polymers, and combinations thereof.

Injectable preparations, for example, sterile injectable aqueous oroleaginous suspensions may be formulated according to the known artusing suitable dispersing or wetting agents and suspending agents. Thesterile injectable preparation may be a sterile injectable solution,suspension or emulsion in a nontoxic parenterally acceptable diluent orsolvent, for example, as a solution in 1,3-butanediol. Among theacceptable vehicles and solvents that may be employed are water,Ringer's solution, U.S.P. and isotonic sodium chloride solution. Inaddition, sterile, fixed oils are conventionally employed as a solventor suspending medium. For this purpose any bland fixed oil can beemployed including synthetic mono- or diglycerides. In addition, fattyacids such as oleic acid are used in the preparation of injectables.

The injectable formulations can be sterilized, for example, byfiltration through a bacterial-retaining filter, or by incorporatingsterilizing agents in the form of sterile solid compositions which canbe dissolved or dispersed in sterile water or other sterile injectablemedium prior to use.

In order to prolong the effect of a drug, it is often desirable to slowthe absorption of the drug from subcutaneous or intramuscular injection.This may be accomplished by the use of a liquid suspension ofcrystalline or amorphous material with poor water solubility. The rateof absorption of the drug then depends upon its rate of dissolutionwhich, in turn, may depend upon crystal size and crystalline form.Alternatively, delayed absorption of a parenterally administered drugform is accomplished by dissolving or suspending the drug in an oilvehicle.

Compositions for rectal or vaginal administration are typicallysuppositories which can be prepared by mixing the targeted particles ofthis invention with suitable non-irritating excipients such as cocoabutter, polyethylene glycol or a suppository wax which are solid atambient temperature but liquid at body temperature and therefore melt inthe rectum or vaginal cavity and release the active ingredient.

Solid dosage forms for oral administration include capsules, tablets,pills, powders, and granules. In such solid dosage forms, the activeingredient is mixed with at least one inert, pharmaceutically acceptableexcipient such as sodium citrate or dicalcium phosphate and/or a)fillers or extenders such as starches, lactose, sucrose, glucose,mannitol, and silicic acid, b) binders such as, for example,carboxymethylcellulose, alginates, gelatin, polyvinylpyrrolidinone,sucrose, and acacia, c) humectants such as glycerol, d) disintegratingagents such as agar, calcium carbonate, potato or tapioca starch,alginic acid, certain silicates, and sodium carbonate, e) solutionretarding agents such as paraffin, f) absorption accelerators such asquaternary ammonium compounds, g) wetting agents such as, for example,cetyl alcohol and glycerol monostearate, h) absorbents such as kaolinand bentonite clay, and i) lubricants such as talc, calcium stearate,magnesium stearate, solid polyethylene glycols, sodium lauryl sulfate,and mixtures thereof. In the case of capsules, tablets and pills, thedosage form may comprise buffering agents.

Solid compositions of a similar type may be employed as fillers in softand hard-filled gelatin capsules using such excipients as lactose ormilk sugar as well as high molecular weight polyethylene glycols and thelike. The solid dosage forms of tablets, dragees, capsules, pills, andgranules can be prepared with coatings and shells such as entericcoatings and other coatings well known in the pharmaceutical formulatingart. They may optionally comprise opacifying agents and can be of acomposition that they release the active ingredient(s) only, orpreferentially, in a certain part of the intestinal tract, optionally,in a delayed manner. Examples of embedding compositions which can beused include polymeric substances and waxes. Solid compositions of asimilar type may be employed as fillers in soft and hard-filled gelatincapsules using such excipients as lactose or milk sugar as well as highmolecular weight polethylene glycols and the like.

The active ingredients can be in micro-encapsulated form with one ormore excipients as noted above. The solid dosage forms of tablets,dragees, capsules, pills, and granules can be prepared with coatings andshells such as enteric coatings, release controlling coatings and othercoatings well known in the pharmaceutical formulating art. In such soliddosage forms the active ingredient may be admixed with at least oneinert diluent such as sucrose, lactose or starch. Such dosage forms maycomprise, as is normal practice, additional substances other than inertdiluents, e.g., tableting lubricants and other tableting aids such amagnesium stearate and microcrystalline cellulose. In the case ofcapsules, tablets and pills, the dosage forms may comprise bufferingagents. They may optionally comprise opacifying agents and can be of acomposition that they release the active ingredient(s) only, orpreferentially, in a certain part of the intestinal tract, optionally,in a delayed manner. Examples of embedding compositions which can beused include polymeric substances and waxes.

Dosage forms for topical and/or transdermal administration of a targetedparticle of this invention may include ointments, pastes, creams,lotions, gels, powders, solutions, sprays, inhalants and/or patches.Generally, the active component is admixed under sterile conditions witha pharmaceutically acceptable excipient and/or any needed preservativesand/or buffers as may be required. Additionally, the present inventioncontemplates the use of transdermal patches, which often have the addedadvantage of providing controlled delivery of an active ingredient tothe body. Such dosage forms may be prepared, for example, by dissolvingand/or dispensing the active ingredient in the proper medium.Alternatively or additionally, the rate may be controlled by eitherproviding a rate controlling membrane and/or by dispersing the activeingredient in a polymer matrix and/or gel.

Suitable devices for use in delivering intradermal pharmaceuticalcompositions described herein include short needle devices such as thosedescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,886,499; 5,190,521; 5,328,483; 5,527,288;4,270,537; 5,015,235; 5,141,496; and 5,417,662. Intradermal compositionsmay be administered by devices which limit the effective penetrationlength of a needle into the skin, such as those described in PCTpublication WO 99/34850 and functional equivalents thereof. Jetinjection devices which deliver liquid vaccines to the dermis via aliquid jet injector and/or via a needle which pierces the stratumcorneum and produces a jet which reaches the dermis are suitable. Jetinjection devices are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos.5,480,381; 5,599,302; 5,334,144; 5,993,412; 5,649,912; 5,569,189;5,704,911; 5,383,851; 5,893,397; 5,466,220; 5,339,163; 5,312,335;5,503,627; 5,064,413; 5,520,639; 4,596,556; 4,790,824; 4,941,880;4,940,460; and PCT publications WO 97/37705 and WO 97/13537. Ballisticpowder/particle delivery devices which use compressed gas to acceleratevaccine in powder form through the outer layers of the skin to thedermis are suitable. Alternatively or additionally, conventionalsyringes may be used in the classical mantoux method of intradermaladministration.

Formulations suitable for topical administration include, but are notlimited to, liquid and/or semi liquid preparations such as liniments,lotions, oil in water and/or water in oil emulsions such as creams,ointments and/or pastes, and/or solutions and/or suspensions.Topically-administrable formulations may, for example, comprise fromabout 1% to about 10% (w/w) active ingredient, although theconcentration of the active ingredient may be as high as the solubilitylimit of the active ingredient in the solvent. Formulations for topicaladministration may further comprise one or more of the additionalingredients described herein.

A pharmaceutical composition of the invention may be prepared, packaged,and/or sold in a formulation suitable for pulmonary administration viathe buccal cavity. Such a formulation may comprise dry particles whichcomprise the active ingredient and which have a diameter in the rangefrom about 0.5 μm to about 7 μm or from about 1 μm to about 6 μm. Suchcompositions are conveniently in the form of dry powders foradministration using a device comprising a dry powder reservoir to whicha stream of propellant may be directed to disperse the powder and/orusing a self propelling solvent/powder dispensing container such as adevice comprising the active ingredient dissolved and/or suspended in alow-boiling propellant in a sealed container. Such powders compriseparticles wherein at least 98% of the particles by weight have adiameter greater than 0.5 μm and at least 95% of the particles by numberhave a diameter less than 7 μm. Alternatively, at least 95% of theparticles by weight have a diameter greater than 1 μm and at least 90%of the particles by number have a diameter less than 6 μm. Dry powdercompositions may include a solid fine powder diluent such as sugar andare conveniently provided in a unit dose form.

Low boiling propellants generally include liquid propellants having aboiling point of below 65° F. at atmospheric pressure. Generally thepropellant may constitute 50 to 99.9% (w/w) of the composition, and theactive ingredient may constitute 0.1 to 20% (w/w) of the composition.The propellant may further comprise additional ingredients such as aliquid non-ionic and/or solid anionic surfactant and/or a solid diluent(which may have a particle size of the same order as particlescomprising the active ingredient).

Pharmaceutical compositions of the invention formulated for pulmonarydelivery may provide the active ingredient in the form of droplets of asolution and/or suspension. Such formulations may be prepared, packaged,and/or sold as aqueous and/or dilute alcoholic solutions and/orsuspensions, optionally sterile, comprising the active ingredient, andmay conveniently be administered using any nebulization and/oratomization device. Such formulations may further comprise one or moreadditional ingredients including, but not limited to, a flavoring agentsuch as saccharin sodium, a volatile oil, a buffering agent, a surfaceactive agent, and/or a preservative such as methylhydroxybenzoate. Thedroplets provided by this route of administration may have an averagediameter in the range from about 0.1 μm to about 200 μm.

The formulations described herein as being useful for pulmonary deliveryare useful for intranasal delivery of a pharmaceutical composition ofthe invention. Another formulation suitable for intranasaladministration is a coarse powder comprising the active ingredient andhaving an average particle from about 0.2 to 500 micrometers. Such aformulation is administered in the manner in which snuff is taken, i.e.by rapid inhalation through the nasal passage from a container of thepowder held close to the nares.

Formulations suitable for nasal administration may, for example,comprise from about as little as 0.1% (w/w) and as much as 100% (w/w) ofthe active ingredient, and may comprise one or more of the additionalingredients described herein. A pharmaceutical composition of theinvention may be prepared, packaged, and/or sold in a formulationsuitable for buccal administration. Such formulations may, for example,be in the form of tablets and/or lozenges made using conventionalmethods, and may, for example, 0.1 to 20% (w/w) active ingredient, thebalance comprising an orally dissolvable and/or degradable compositionand, optionally, one or more of the additional ingredients describedherein. Alternately, formulations suitable for buccal administration maycomprise a powder and/or an aerosolized and/or atomized solution and/orsuspension comprising the active ingredient. Such powdered, aerosolized,and/or aerosolized formulations, when dispersed, may have an averageparticle and/or droplet size in the range from about 0.1 to about 200nanometers, and may further comprise one or more of the additionalingredients described herein.

A pharmaceutical composition of the invention may be prepared, packaged,and/or sold in a formulation suitable for ophthalmic administration.Such formulations may, for example, be in the form of eye dropsincluding, for example, a 0.1/1.0% (w/w) solution and/or suspension ofthe active ingredient in an aqueous or oily liquid excipient. Such dropsmay further comprise buffering agents, salts, and/or one or more otherof the additional ingredients described herein. Otheropthalmically-administrable formulations which are useful include thosewhich comprise the active ingredient in microcrystalline form and/or ina liposomal preparation. Ear drops and/or eye drops are contemplated asbeing within the scope of this invention.

General considerations in the formulation and/or manufacture ofpharmaceutical agents may be found, for example, in Remington: TheScience and Practice of Pharmacy 21^(st) ed., Lippincott Williams &Wilkins, 2005.

Administration

In some embodiments, a therapeutically effective amount of an inventivecomposition is delivered to a patient and/or organism prior to,simultaneously with, and/or after diagnosis with a disease, disorder,and/or condition. In some embodiments, a therapeutic amount of aninventive composition is delivered to a patient and/or organism priorto, simultaneously with, and/or after onset of symptoms of a disease,disorder, and/or condition. In some embodiments, the amount of inventivetargeted particle is sufficient to treat, alleviate, ameliorate,relieve, delay onset of, inhibit progression of, reduce severity of,and/or reduce incidence of one or more symptoms or features of thedisease, disorder, and/or condition.

The compositions, according to the method of the present invention, maybe administered using any amount and any route of administrationeffective for treatment. The exact amount required will vary fromsubject to subject, depending on the species, age, and general conditionof the subject, the severity of the infection, the particularcomposition, its mode of administration, its mode of activity, and thelike. The compositions of the invention are typically formulated indosage unit form for ease of administration and uniformity of dosage. Itwill be understood, however, that the total daily usage of thecompositions of the present invention will be decided by the attendingphysician within the scope of sound medical judgment. The specifictherapeutically effective dose level for any particular subject ororganism will depend upon a variety of factors including the disorderbeing treated and the severity of the disorder; the activity of thespecific active ingredient employed; the specific composition employed;the age, body weight, general health, sex and diet of the subject; thetime of administration, route of administration, and rate of excretionof the specific active ingredient employed; the duration of thetreatment; drugs used in combination or coincidental with the specificactive ingredient employed; and like factors well known in the medicalarts.

The pharmaceutical compositions of the present invention may beadministered by any route. In some embodiments, the pharmaceuticalcompositions of the present invention are administered by a variety ofroutes, including oral, intravenous, intramuscular, intra-arterial,intramedullary, intrathecal, subcutaneous, intraventricular,transdermal, interdermal, rectal, intravaginal, intraperitoneal, topical(as by powders, ointments, creams, and/or drops), transdermal, mucosal,nasal, buccal, enteral, sublingual; by intratracheal instillation,bronchial instillation, and/or inhalation; and/or as an oral spray,nasal spray, and/or aerosol. Specifically contemplated routes aresystemic intravenous injection, regional administration via blood and/orlymph supply, and/or direct administration to an affected site. In someembodiments, inventive targeted particles are administered parenterally.In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles are administeredintravenously. In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles areadministered orally.

In some embodiments, inventive targeted particles are administereddirectly to an affected site. For example, inventive targeted particlesmay be administered locally near a tumor and/or may be administereddirectly to a tumor. In some embodiments, local administration refers toadministration of targeted particles directly to a specific organ (e.g.injection into the prostate). In some embodiments, local administrationrefers to administration of targeted particles directly to a particulartissue. Local administration may be achieved via injection of targetedparticles directly into a tumor or in the vicinity of a tumor. Localadministration may be achieved by topical administration of targetedparticles at or near the site of a tumor. Local administration may beachieved by implantation of targeted particles at or near a site of atumor by stereotactic surgery. Local administration may be achieved byimplantation of targeted particles at or near the site of a tumor duringsurgical removal of the tumor. In some embodiments, local administrationrefers to administration of targeted particles to a specific cell orpopulation of cells (e.g. prostate cancer cells).

In general the most appropriate route of administration will depend upona variety of factors including the nature of the agent (e.g., itsstability in the environment of the gastrointestinal tract), thecondition of the subject (e.g., whether the subject is able to tolerateoral administration), etc. At present the oral and/or nasal spray and/oraerosol route is most commonly used to deliver therapeutic agentsdirectly to the lungs and/or respiratory system. However, the inventionencompasses the delivery of the inventive pharmaceutical composition byany appropriate route taking into consideration likely advances in thesciences of drug delivery.

In certain embodiments, the targeted particles of the invention may beadministered at therapeutic agent in amounts ranging from about 0.001mg/kg to about 100 mg/kg, from about 0.01 mg/kg to about 50 mg/kg, fromabout 0.1 mg/kg to about 40 mg/kg, from about 0.5 mg/kg to about 30mg/kg, from about 0.01 mg/kg to about 10 mg/kg, from about 0.1 mg/kg toabout 10 mg/kg, or from about 1 mg/kg to about 25 mg/kg, of subject bodyweight per day, one or more times a day, to obtain the desiredtherapeutic effect. The desired dosage may be delivered three times aday, two times a day, once a day, every other day, every third day,every week, every two weeks, every three weeks, or every four weeks. Incertain embodiments, the desired dosage may be delivered using multipleadministrations (e.g., two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine,ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, or more administrations).

In some embodiments, the present invention encompasses “therapeuticcocktails” comprising inventive targeted particles. In some embodiments,the targeted particles comprise a single species of targeting moietywhich can bind to multiple targets. In some embodiments, differenttargeted particles comprise different targeting moiety species, and allof the different targeting moiety species can bind to the same target.In some embodiments, different targeted particles comprise differenttargeting moiety species, and all of the different targeting moietyspecies can bind to different targets. In some embodiments, suchdifferent targets may be associated with the same cell type. In someembodiments, such different targets may be associated with differentcell types.

It will be appreciated that targeted particles and pharmaceuticalcompositions of the present invention can be employed in combinationtherapies. The particular combination of therapies (therapeutics orprocedures) to employ in a combination regimen will take into accountcompatibility of the desired therapeutics and/or procedures and thedesired therapeutic effect to be achieved. It will be appreciated thatthe therapies employed may achieve a desired effect for the same purpose(for example, an inventive targeted particle useful for detecting tumorsmay be administered concurrently with another agent useful for detectingtumors), or they may achieve different effects (e.g., control of anyadverse effects).

Pharmaceutical compositions of the present invention may be administeredeither alone or in combination with one or more other therapeuticagents. By “in combination with,” it is not intended to imply that theagents must be administered at the same time and/or formulated fordelivery together, although these methods of delivery are within thescope of the invention. The compositions can be administeredconcurrently with, prior to, or subsequent to, one or more other desiredtherapeutics or medical procedures. In general, each agent will beadministered at a dose and/or on a time schedule determined for thatagent. Additionally, the invention encompasses the delivery of theinventive pharmaceutical compositions in combination with agents thatmay improve their bioavailability, reduce and/or modify theirmetabolism, inhibit their excretion, and/or modify their distributionwithin the body.

The particular combination of therapies (therapeutics and/or procedures)to employ in a combination regimen will take into account compatibilityof the desired therapeutics and/or procedures and/or the desiredtherapeutic effect to be achieved. It will be appreciated that thetherapies employed may achieve a desired effect for the same disorder(for example, an inventive targeted particle may be administeredconcurrently with another therapeutic agent used to treat the samedisorder), and/or they may achieve different effects (e.g., control ofany adverse effects). In some embodiments, targeted particles of theinvention are administered with a second therapeutic agent that isapproved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

In will further be appreciated that therapeutically active agentsutilized in combination may be administered together in a singlecomposition or administered separately in different compositions.

In general, it is expected that agents utilized in combination with beutilized at levels that do not exceed the levels at which they areutilized individually. In some embodiments, the levels utilized incombination will be lower than those utilized individually.

In some embodiments, inventive compositions may be administered incombination with any therapeutic agent or therapeutic regimen that isuseful to treat, alleviate, ameliorate, relieve, delay onset of, inhibitprogression of, reduce severity of, and/or reduce incidence of one ormore symptoms or features of cancer. For example, inventive compositionsmay be administered in combination with traditional cancer therapiesincluding, but not limited to, surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy,hormonal therapy, immunotherapy, complementary or alternative therapy,and any combination of these therapies.

In some embodiments, inventive compositions are administered incombination with surgery to remove a tumor. Because complete removal ofa tumor with minimal or no damage to the rest of a patient's body istypically the goal of cancer treatment, surgery is often performed tophysically remove part or all of a tumor. If surgery is unable tocompletely remove a tumor, additional therapies (e.g. chemotherapy,radiation therapy, hormonal therapy, immunotherapy, complementary oralternative therapy) may be employed.

In some embodiments, inventive compositions are administered incombination with radiation therapy. Radiation therapy (also known asradiotherapy, X-ray therapy, or irradiation) is the use of ionizingradiation to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation therapy maybe used to treat almost any type of solid tumor, including cancers ofthe brain, breast, cervix, larynx, lung, pancreas, prostate, skin,stomach, uterus, or soft tissue sarcomas. Radiation can be used to treatleukemia and lymphoma. Radiation therapy can be administered externallyvia external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) or internally via brachytherapy.Typically, the effects of radiation therapy are localized and confinedto the region being treated. Radiation therapy injures or destroys tumorcells in an area being treated (e.g. a target organ, tissue, and/orcell) by damaging their genetic material, preventing tumor cells fromgrowing and dividing. In general, radiation therapy attempts to damageas many tumor cells as possible while limiting harm to nearby healthytissue. Hence, it is often administered in multiple doses, allowinghealthy tissue to recover between fractions.

In some embodiments, inventive compositions are administered incombination with immunotherapy. Immunotherapy is the use of immunemechanisms against tumors which can be used in various forms of cancer,such as breast cancer (e.g. trastuzumab/Herceptin®), leukemia (e.g.gemtuzumab ozogamicin/Mylotarg®), and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (e.g.rituximab/Rituxan®). In some embodiments, immunotherapy agents aremonoclonal antibodies directed against proteins that are characteristicto the cells of the cancer in question. In some embodiments,immunotherapy agents are cytokines that modulate the immune system'sresponse. In some embodiments, immunotherapy agents may be vaccines.

In some embodiments, vaccines can be administered to prevent and/ordelay the onset of cancer. In some embodiments, cancer vaccines preventand/or delay the onset of cancer by preventing infection by oncogenicinfectious agents. In some embodiments, cancer vaccines prevent and/ordelay the onset of cancer by mounting an immune response againstcancer-specific epitopes. To give but one example of a cancer vaccine,an experimental vaccine for HPV types 16 and 18 was shown to be 100%successful at preventing infection with these types of HPV and, thus,are able to prevent the majority of cervical cancer cases (Harper etal., 2004, Lancet, 364:1757).

In some embodiments, inventive compositions are administered incombination with complementary and alternative medicine treatments. Someexemplary complementary measures include, but are not limited to,botanical medicine (e.g. use of mistletoe extract combined withtraditional chemotherapy for the treatment of solid tumors); acupuncturefor managing chemotherapy-associated nausea and vomiting and incontrolling pain associated with surgery; prayer; psychologicalapproaches (e.g. “imaging” or meditation) to aid in pain relief orimprove mood. Some exemplary alternative measures include, but are notlimited to, diet and other lifestyle changes (e.g. plant-based diet, thegrape diet, and the cabbage diet).

In some embodiments, inventive compositions are administered incombination with any of the traditional cancer treatments describedherein, which are often associated with unpleasant, uncomfortable,and/or dangerous side effects. For example, chronic pain often resultsfrom continued tissue damage due to the cancer itself or due to thetreatment (i.e., surgery, radiation, chemotherapy). Alternatively oradditionally, such therapies are often associated with hair loss,nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, anemia, malnutrition,depression of immune system, infection, sepsis, hemorrhage, secondaryneoplasms, cardiotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, ototoxicity,etc. Thus, inventive compositions which are administered in combinationwith any of the traditional cancer treatments described herein may bealso be administered in combination with any therapeutic agent ortherapeutic regimen that is useful to treat, alleviate, ameliorate,relieve, delay onset of, inhibit progression of, reduce severity of,and/or reduce incidence of one or more side effects of cancer treatment.To give but a few examples, pain can be treated with opioids and/oranalgesics (e.g. morphine, oxycodone, antiemetics, etc.); nausea andvomiting can be treated with 5-HT₃ inhibitors (e.g. dolasetron/Anzemet®,granisetron/Kytril®, ondansetron/Zofran®, palonsetron/Aloxi®) and/orsubstance P inhibitors (e.g. aprepitant/Emend®); immunosuppression canbe treated with a blood transfusion; infection and/or sepsis can betreated with antibiotics (e.g. penicillins, tetracyclines,cephalosporins, sulfonamides, aminoglycosides, etc.); and so forth.

In some embodiments, inventive compositions may be administered and/orinventive diagnostic methods may be performed in combination with anytherapeutic agent or therapeutic regimen that is useful to diagnose oneor more symptoms or features of cancer (e.g. detect the presence ofand/or locate a tumor). In some embodiments, inventive targetedparticles may be used in combination with one or more other diagnosticagents. To give but one example, targeted particles used to detecttumors may be administered in combination with other agents useful inthe detection of tumors. For example, inventive targeted particles maybe administered in combination with traditional tissue biopsy followedby immunohistochemical staining and serological tests (e.g. prostateserum antigen test). Alternatively or additionally, inventive targetedparticles may be administered in combination with a contrasting agentfor use in computed tomography (CT) scans and/or MRI.

Kits

The invention provides a variety of kits comprising one or more of thetargeted particles of the invention. For example, the invention providesa kit comprising an inventive targeted particle and instructions foruse. A kit may comprise multiple different targeted particles. A kit maycomprise any of a number of additional components or reagents in anycombination. All of the various combinations are not set forthexplicitly but each combination is included in the scope of theinvention.

According to certain embodiments of the invention, a kit may include,for example, (i) a targeted particle comprising a particle, a specifictargeting moiety, and one or more particular therapeutic agents to bedelivered; (ii) instructions for administering the targeted particle toa subject in need thereof.

According to certain embodiments of the invention, a kit may be providedwhich includes materials useful for identifying and/or screening fornovel targeting moieties. Such a kit may include, for example, (i) atargeted particle comprising a particle, a library of targetingmoieties, and one or more therapeutic agents to be delivered; (ii) atargeted particle that may serve as a positive control; (iii) a targetedparticle that may serve as a negative control. In some embodiments, atargeted particle that may serve as a positive control may comprise atargeting moiety that is already known to target a specific organ,tissue, cell, intracellular compartment, etc. In some embodiments, atargeted particle that may serve as a positive control may comprise atherapeutic agent that is already known to treat and/or diagnose aparticular disease, disorder, and/or condition. In some embodiments, atargeted particle that may serve as a negative control may comprise atargeting moiety that is already known not to target a specific target(e.g. a target associated with a particular organ, tissue, cell,intracellular compartment, etc.). In some embodiments, a targetedparticle that may serve as a negative control may comprise a therapeuticagent that is already known not to treat and/or diagnose a particulardisease, disorder, and/or condition. In some embodiments, a targetedparticle that may serve as a negative control may comprise an targetingmoiety that is already known to target a specific target (e.g., a targetassociated with a particular organ, tissue, cell, intracellularcompartment, etc., but does not comprise a therapeutic agent. In someembodiments, a targeted particle that may serve as a negative controlmay comprise a therapeutic agent that is already known to treat and/ordiagnose a particular disease, disorder, and/or condition, but does notcomprise a targeting moiety.

Kits typically include instructions for use of inventive targetedparticles. Instructions may, for example, comprise protocols and/ordescribe conditions for production of targeted particles, administrationof targeted particles to a subject in need thereof, design of noveltargeted particles, etc. Kits will generally include one or more vesselsor containers so that some or all of the individual components andreagents may be separately housed. Kits may also include a means forenclosing individual containers in relatively close confinement forcommercial sale, e.g., a plastic box, in which instructions, packagingmaterials such as styrofoam, etc., may be enclosed. An identifier, e.g.,a bar code, radio frequency identification (ID) tag, etc., may bepresent in or on the kit or in or one or more of the vessels orcontainers included in the kit. An identifier can be used, e.g., touniquely identify the kit for purposes of quality control, inventorycontrol, tracking, movement between workstations, etc.

Exemplification Example 1 Formulation of Functionalized PLGA-PEGNanoparticles for In Vivo Targeted Drug Delivery Materials and Methods

Materials

Docetaxel and ¹⁴C-paclitaxel were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich (St.Louis, Mo.). Poly(_(D,L)-lactide-co-glycolide) (50/50) with terminalcarboxylate groups (PLGA, inherent viscosity 0.20 dL/g inhexafluoroisopropanol, MW approximately 17 kDa) was obtained fromAbsorbable Polymers International (Pelham, Ala.). NH₂-PEG-COOH (MW 3400)was purchased from Nektar Therapeutics (San Carlos, Calif.). Allreagents were analytical grade or above and used as received, unlessotherwise stated. Molecular biology buffers were purchased from BostonBioProducts (Worcester, Mass.). Tissue culture reagents and the LNCaPcell line were obtained from American Type Culture Collection (Manassas,Va.). RNA aptamer (sequence:5′-NH₂-spacer-[GGG/AGG/ACG/AUG/CGG/AUC/AGC/CAU/GUU/UAC/GUC/ACU/CCU/UGU/CAA/UCC/UCA/UCG/GCiT-3′(SEQID NO.: 3)] with 2′-fluoro pyrimidines, a 5′-amino group attached by ahexaethyleneglycol spacer and a 3′-inverted T cap) was customsynthesized by RNA-TEC (Leuven, Belgium) at a purity above 90%.

Synthesis of PLGA-b-PEG

Carboxylate-functionalized copolymer PLGA-b-PEG was synthesized by theattachment of COOH-PEG-NH₂ to PLGA-COOH. PLGA-COOH (5 g, 0.28 mmol) inmethylene chloride (10 mL) was converted to PLGA-NHS with excessN-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS, 135 mg, 1.1 mmol) in the presence of1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-carbodiimide (EDC, 230 mg, 1.2 mmol).PLGA-NHS was precipitated with ethyl ether (5 mL), and repeatedly washedin an ice-cold mixture of ethyl ether and methanol to remove residualNHS. After drying under vacuum, PLGA-NHS (1 g, 0.059 mmol) was dissolvedin chloroform (4 mL) followed by addition of NH₂-PEG-COOH (250 mg, 0.074mmol) and N,N-diisopropylethylamine (28 mg, 0.22 mmol). The co-polymerwas precipitated with cold methanol after 12 hours and washed with thesame solvent (3×5 mL) to remove unreacted PEG. The resulting PLGA-PEGblock co-polymer was dried under vacuum and used for nanoparticle (NP)preparation without further treatment. ¹H NMR (CDCl₃ at 300 Hz) δ 5.2(m, ((OCH(CH₃)C(O)OCH₂C(O))_(n)—(CH₂CH₂O)_(m)), 4.8 (m,((OCH(CH₃)C(O)OCH ₂C(O))_(n)—(CH₂CH₂O)_(m)), 3.7 (s,((OCH(CH₃)C(O)OCH₂C(O))_(n)—(CH ₂CH ₂O)_(m)), 1.6 (d, ((OCH(CH₃)C(O)OCH₂C(O))_(n)—(CH₂CH₂O)_(m)).

Formulation of Taxane Drug-Loaded PLGA-b-PEG NPs

The nanoprecipitation method was employed for the formation ofdrug-encapsulated carboxylated PLGA-b-PEG NPs, similarly to previouslydescribed (Farokhzad et al., 2006, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA,103:6315; and Fonseca et al., 2002, J. Control. Release, 83:273).Briefly, docetaxel (or ¹⁴C-paclitaxel) was dissolved in various organicsolvents that are miscible with water. Polymer was likewise dissolvedand mixed with the drug. NPs were formed by adding the drug-polymersolution to water, a non-solvent. The resulting NP suspension wasallowed to stir uncovered for 6 hours at room temperature. NPs werepurified by centrifugation (10 minutes at 10,000×g) or byultrafiltration (15 minutes at 3000×g, Amicon Ultra, Ultracel membranewith 100,000 NMWL, Millipore, Billerica, Mass.). PLGA-b-PEG NPs werere-suspended, washed with water, and collected likewise.

Parameters controlling formation of NPs were systematically varied inthis study. Generally, the starting formulation was as follows:PLGA-b-PEG (10 mg/mL) and docetaxel (0.1 mg/mL) were dissolved inacetonitrile. The mixture was added dropwise to a 2×volume of stiffingwater. NPs were produced with the nanoprecipitation method in foursolvents: N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF), acetone, acetonitrile, andtetrahydrofuran (THF). Effects of the various solvents were assayed onthe overall size of NPs. For each solvent, the ratio of solvent to waterwas varied from 0.1 to 1.0 (using 10 mg/mL polymer for each). Further, arange of polymer concentrations in the organic phase from 5 mg/mL to 50mg/mL was used for formation of NPs in a 2×volume of water. NPs wereprocessed as above in triplicate, noting trends in formulationparameters. In another study, NPs containing variable amounts ofdocetaxel were synthesized by adjusting docetaxel drug loading from 0%to 10% by weight of the added polymer, formulating NPs from 10 mg/mLpolymer in acetonitrile and a 2×volume of water.

NP post-formulation stability was studied for both the purification andparticle formation steps, and through the storage in solid-state afterfreeze-drying. NPs were also flash-frozen in liquid nitrogen prior tolyopholization for freeze-drying.

Determination of Particle Sizes and Polydispersities

Particle size distributions were measured by dynamic light scattering(Brookhaven Instruments Corporation 90 plus Particle Sizer, 676 nmlaser) at 25° C. and at a scattering angle of 90° at a concentration ofapproximately 1 mg NP/mL water. Intensity-weighted mean value wasrecorded as the average of three measurements.

Determination of Drug Content

NPs were dissolved in acetonitrile and measured by HPLC in triplicate todetermine docetaxel content. The Agilent 1100 HPLC (Palo Alto, Calif.)was equipped with a UV detector and a reverse-phase pentafluorophenylcolumn (Curosil-PFP, 250×4.6 mm, 5μ, Phenomenex, Torrance, Calif.) witha non-gradient mobile phase of water and acetonitrile (v/v 50/50) at aconstant flow rate 1 mL/minute. The docetaxel peak was measured at awavelength of 227 nm and quantitatively determined by comparing with astandard curve.

Association of Aptamer with PLGA-b-PEG-COOH NPs

PLGA-b-PEG NPs (10 μg/μL) were suspended in water and were incubatedwith EDC (400 mM) and NHS (200 mM) for 20 minutes. NPs were thenrepeatedly washed in DNase-, RNase-free water (3×15 mL) followed byultrafiltration. NHS-activated NPs were reacted with a 5′-amino-RNAaptamer (1 μg/μL). The resulting NP-Apt targeted particles were washedwith ultrapure water (15 mL) by ultrafiltration, and surface-boundaptamers were denatured at 90° C. and allowed to assume bindingconformation during snap-cooling on ice. NP suspensions were kept at 4°C. until use.

NP-Apt bioassociation was confirmed on 10% TBE-Urea PAGE. NPs wereincubated as above with (+EDC) and without (−EDC) crosslinker to confirmcovalent association. Aptamer, NP, NP+Apt (+EDC), NP+Apt (−EDC), washedNP+Apt (+EDC), and washed NP+Apt (−EDC) were separated by PAGE. Themolecular weight (MW) DNA marker and free aptamer served as standardsfor a 57 base pair band on the gel.

In vivo Tumor Targeting and Biodistribution of NP-Apt Targeted Particles

All animal studies were carried out under the supervision of MIT'sDivision of Comparative Medicine and in compliance with NIH's Principlesof Laboratory Animal Care. Human xenograft prostate cancer tumors wereinduced in 8-week old balb/c nude mice (Charles River Laboratories,Wilmington, Mass.). Mice were injected subcutaneously in the right flankwith 3×10⁶ LNCaP cells (i.e. cell line established from a metastaticlesion of human prostatic adenocarcinoma) suspended in a 1:1 mixture ofmedia and matrigel (BD Biosciences, Franklin Lakes, N.J.). Prior to usein tumor induction, LNCaP cells were cultured in RPMI-1640 mediumsupplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, 100 units/mL penicillin G, and100 μg/mL streptomycin.

Tumor targeting studies were carried out after the mice developedapproximately 100 mg tumors. Mice were divided into groups of four,minimizing tumor size variations between groups. Mice were anesthesizedby intraperitoneal injection of avertin (200 mg/kg body weight), anddosed with NPs or NP-Apt targeted particles by retro-orbital injection.NPs were traced by encapsulating ¹⁴C-paclitaxel and suspended in 200 μLPBS (1×) prior to administration. Different groups were euthanized at 2,6 or 24 hours, and 200 μL of blood was drawn by cardiac puncture fromeach mouse. The tumor, heart, lungs, liver, spleen and kidneys wereharvested from each animal. ¹⁴C content of tissues was assayed in aPackard Tri-Carb Scintillation Analyser (Downers Grove, Ill.). Tissueswere solubilized in Solvable (Packard), and activity was counted inHionic-Fluor scintillation cocktail (PerkinElmer, Boston, Mass.). Theliver from each mouse was homogenized due to its large size, andapproximately 100 mg of tissue was placed in a scintillation vial foranalysis. The other organs were placed directly in scintillation vials.Each organ was solubilized in 2 mL Solvable for approximately 12 hoursat 60° C., and the resulting solution was de-colored with 200 μLhydrogen peroxide for 1 hour at 60° C. For the blood, 400 μL Solvablewas added, and the vials were otherwise treated similarly to thetissues. To determine 100% dose, vials of the formulated NPs werecounted along with the tissues. Data are presented as percent injecteddose per gram of tissue.

Statistical Analysis

Statistical analysis of samples was undertaken using a student's t-test,and p-values<0.05 were considered to be statistically significant. Alldata reported are means+/−standard deviations, unless otherwise noted.

Results

Synthesis of PLGA-b-PEG Copolymer

Carboxyl-functionalized PLGA-b-PEG copolymer was synthesized by covalentmodification of PLGA-COOH with NH₂-PEG-COOH, both having fixed blocklength, to generate PLGA-b-PEG-COOH (FIG. 1). The carboxyl group in thecopolymer is at the terminal end of the hydrophilic PEG block;therefore, upon NP formulation, PEG should facilitate the presentationof the carboxyl groups on the nanoparticle surface making it availablefor surface chemistry. RNA aptamers are synthesized with 5′-amino groupsthat can be covalently associated with the carboxyl groups on the NPsurface using carbodiimide coupling chemistry (FIG. 1). After preparingthe polymer, the efficiency of the coupling reaction was determined by¹H NMR, which revealed that approximately 83% of PLGA was associatedwith the PEG segment.

Effects of Varying Formulation Parameters to Control Nanoparticle Size

As a starting point for controlling NP size distribution, the effect ofvarying the type of organic solvent used to solubilize the drug andpolymer was analyzed. Previous studies have suggested that themiscibility of the organic solvent in water can impact NP size for agiven solvent:water system (Galindo-Rodriguez et al., 2004, Pharm. Res.,21:1428; and Bilati et al., 2005, Eur. J. Pharm. Sci., 24:67).Generally, miscibility can be quantitatively expressed by comparingsolubility parameters (δ) of both solvent and water (Yu et al., Generalprinciples governing dissolution of materials in solvents, ChemTecPublishing, 2001). As solvents become more miscible, the difference insolubility parameters between the solvents (Δδ) is minimized. Therelationship of NP size and solvent miscibility with water was measuredusing four organic solvents, a dependence of NP size on the solubilityparameters was observed. As shown in FIG. 2, sizes of PLGA-b-PEG NPs andwater-miscibility of the four organic solvents used in this study weregenerally correlated; an increase of water miscibility (decrease in Δδ,as indicated by the arrow shown in FIG. 2) led to a decrease in the meanNP size, with all other formulation parameters held constant. NPsprepared in DMF, the most water miscible solvent tested, resulted in thesmallest particles. Without wishing to be bound to any particulartheory, this may be due to more efficient solvent diffusion and polymerdispersion into water.

In conjunction with the investigation of the effect of solvent-watermiscibility, the effect of altering the solvent:water ratio during NPformulation was analyzed. When solvent:water ratios were varied for afixed polymer concentration (10 mg/mL) as shown in FIG. 2A, no clearcorrelation of particle size with solvent-to-water ratio was observed.Most of the NP sizes remained relatively unchanged when the ratio was ina range of 0.1-0.5. In acetone, for example, NP sizes increased from115.3±5.1 nm to 120.9±6.9 nm as the V_(solvent)/V_(water) ratioincreased from 0.1 to 0.5, respectively (mean±s.d., n=3 for eachformulation; p>0.05). For THF, the size remained consistent as the ratiowas varied from 0.1 to 0.5, with respective sizes of 130±0.5 nm and129±15.5 nm. At the solvent:water ratio of 1.0, a large increase inparticle size was observed. Without wishing to be bound by anyparticular theory, this is presumably due to poor phase separation—NPsformulated in acetonitrile and THF were sized greater than 200 nm(p<0.05, comparing sizes for ratio of 1 vs. 0.5).

When polymer concentrations were varied during NP formulation at a fixedsolvent:water ratio (FIG. 2B), a trend of increasing NP size withincreasing polymer concentration was observed. For example, NP sizesincreased from 69.0 nm to 165.0 nm in DMF as the polymer concentrationincreased 10 times from 5 mg/mL to 50 mg/mL. Similar trends wereobserved in all other solvents investigated. Interpreting data in termsof changes in volumetric size showed linear agreement between size andpolymer concentration. The R² values for the plot of mean NP volume andpolymer concentration (FIG. 3) were 0.997, 0.985, 0.998, and 0.997 forDMF, acetone, THF, and acetonitrile, respectively. For the inventivepolymer system, using the linear correlation of the NP volumetric sizeand polymer concentration allows for formulation of NP with predefined,desired sizes.

Nanoparticle Polydispersity at Different Drug Loadings

The effect of docetaxel loading on resulting NP size distributions wasanalyzed, comparing NPs loaded with 1%, 5% and 10% docetaxel. For agiven NP formulation (150 nm NPs), the polydispersity of the particlepreparations increased with docetaxel concentration as follows: from0.154 for the 1% loading to 0.203 for the 5% loading and 0.212 for the10% loading. The size distribution of NPs exhibited a biphasic trendwith a smaller diameter particle distribution accompanied by adistribution of larger diameter particles (FIG. 4). The distributioncorresponding to smaller particles did not shift with the increase ofdrug concentration. The larger diameter locus of the two sizedistributions shifted higher as the drug loading increased (the sizeincreasing from approximately 300 nm to 1200 nm, FIG. 4). Since the onlydifference between these formulations is the amount of drug loading, asignificant amount of the NPs formed may be due to aggregation ofunencapsulated docetaxel, due to its poor water solubility.

Control of Nanoparticle Size During Post-Formulation Treatment

NPs formed by nanoprecipitation generally do not require surfactant;however, the lack of surfactant can cause NP aggregation afterformulation. High-speed centrifugation, for example, can substantiallyincrease particle size due to aggregation upon pelleting. After NPs(approximately 80 nm) were centrifuged at 10,000×g for 10 minutes, anincrease in diameter of approximately 20%-30% was observed for each ofthe centrifugation steps (FIG. 5A). However, the mechanical force thatcauses aggregation can be substantially avoided by low-speedultrafiltration (FIG. 5A). Use of a commercially available centrifugefiltration device reproducibly controls particle size during multiplewashing steps.

For translation to clinical use of any biodegradable formulation,stability upon storage is a concern. Freeze-drying NPs and storingfrozen in solid-state is a common approach, and sugars like sucrose canact as a lyoprotectant during the process (De Jaeghere et al., 2000,Pharm. Dev. Technol., 5:473; and Konan et al., 2003, Eur. J.Pharmaceutics Biopharmaceutics, 55:115). Addition of 10% sucrose to anaqueous NP suspension (10 mg/mL) allows recovery of NPs of very similarsize as originally formulated (FIG. 5B). Without sucrose as alyoprotectant, NPs aggregated to a few micrometers in size and were notuseful upon reconstitution for in vivo systemic delivery (FIG. 5B).

Association of Aptamer with Nanoparticle

PAGE was utilized to examine the association of NPs with aptamers and todemonstrate successful removal of aptamers that had not associated withNPs after the reaction. The mixing of aptamer and NP without theaddition of the coupling agent (−EDC, FIG. 6) did not show any band ofunassociated aptamer, indicating a lack of non-specific interactionbetween the aptamer and NP. Association with the addition of EDC (+EDC,FIG. 6) leads to RNA bands consistent with RNA covalently bound to NPsand unable to run on the gel, both before and after washing. Afterrepetitive washing by ultrafiltration, the unassociated aptamer was nolonger detectable (FIG. 6).

In Vivo Tumor Targeting and Biodistribution of Nanoparticle-AptamerTargeted Particles

As a result of investigations of formulation parameters and theireffects on NP size, an optimal NP formulation in terms of size and drugloading was chosen for in vivo study. For the study, ¹⁴C-paclitaxel(serving as a tracing agent) was encapsulated at a drug loading of 1%into the PLGA-b-PEG NPs. Paclitaxel is a taxane drug related todocetaxel and is available commercially as a radiochemical. Theresulting NPs were sized at 156.8+/−3.9 nm, and after bioassociationwith the aptamers, the final size of NP-Apt targeted particles wasmeasured to be 188.1±4.0 nm. At all three time-points, the¹⁴C-paclitaxel dose recovered in the tumor was higher for the NP-Apttargeted groups compared to the control NP groups (FIG. 7). The valuesin % injected dose per gram of tissue at 2, 6, and 24 hours for theNP-Apt group were 1.49±0.92, 1.98±1.72, and 0.83±0.21, respectively(mean±S.D., n=4). For the NP control group, the respective values at 2,6, and 24 hours were 1.10±0.20, 0.96±0.44, and 0.22±0.07. At the 24 hourendpoint of the study, the level in the tumor was 3.77-fold higher forthe NP-Apt group (p=0.002, n=4). At the 2 and 6 hour time-points, thelevel of NP-Apt in the tumor was 1.35-fold and 2.06-fold higher than thecontrol, respectively, but this difference was not statisticallysignificant. In both 2 and 6 hour groups, intra-tumoral concentrationsof NP-Apt increased as compared to the NP control, while levels in mostother tissues decreased in parallel to less NPs in circulation. Whilenot wishing to be bound by any particular theory, it is possible thatthe concentration of recovered drug in the tumor over time shows boththe enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect and the effect oftargeting. The ability of the NP-Apt targeted particles to maintain asignificantly higher concentration in the tumor at 24 hours is possiblydue to uptake by the targeted LNCaP cells, while the NP group withouttargeting ligand diffused away from the tumor over time in the absenceof cell uptake. Similar strong binding of the NP-Apt targeted particlesto LNCaP cells was observed in vitro (Farokhzad et al., 2004, CancerResearch, 64:7668). It is possible that the concentration in the tumorfor both groups declines from the 6 and 24 h time-points due to theburst effect of the NPs, which can release a large percentage of thedrug during this time (Fonseca et al., 2002, J. Control. Release,83:273). Drug released at the tumor site, if not internalized by thecells, can diffuse away or be clear from the site.

Biodistribution patterns to the heart, lungs, and kidneys did not showsubstantial accumulation in either group and were not significantlydifferent (FIG. 8). Uptake by the reticuloendothelial system (RES),including the spleen and liver, was observed to be higher for NP-Apttargeted particles as compared to control NPs. The outer PEG layer,while providing an excellent stealth shield for the NP group, wasmodified in the NP-Apt group by association of aptamers with theparticle surface. Aptamers are not considered to be immunogenic, andthus it is likely that the cause of the observed RES uptake was thisdisruption of the PEG shield. Further, the bioassociation resulted in amoderate increase in mean particle size compared to the NP group. Theincreased size can partially explain the increased uptake the spleen(Storm et al., 1995, Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev., 17:31).

Equivalents and Scope

Those skilled in the art will recognize, or be able to ascertain usingno more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specificembodiments of the invention, described herein. The scope of the presentinvention is not intended to be limited to the above Description, butrather is as set forth in the appended claims.

Those skilled in the art will recognize, or be able to ascertain usingno more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specificembodiments of the invention described herein. The scope of the presentinvention is not intended to be limited to the above Description, butrather is as set forth in the appended claims.

In the claims articles such as “a,” “an,” and “the” may mean one or morethan one unless indicated to the contrary or otherwise evident from thecontext. Thus, for example, reference to “a nanoparticle” includes aplurality of such nanoparticle, and reference to “the cell” includesreference to one or more cells known to those skilled in the art, and soforth. Claims or descriptions that include “or” between one or moremembers of a group are considered satisfied if one, more than one, orall of the group members are present in, employed in, or otherwiserelevant to a given product or process unless indicated to the contraryor otherwise evident from the context. The invention includesembodiments in which exactly one member of the group is present in,employed in, or otherwise relevant to a given product or process. Theinvention includes embodiments in which more than one, or all of thegroup members are present in, employed in, or otherwise relevant to agiven product or process. Furthermore, it is to be understood that theinvention encompasses all variations, combinations, and permutations inwhich one or more limitations, elements, clauses, descriptive terms,etc., from one or more of the listed claims is introduced into anotherclaim. For example, any claim that is dependent on another claim can bemodified to include one or more limitations found in any other claimthat is dependent on the same base claim. Furthermore, where the claimsrecite a composition, it is to be understood that methods of using thecomposition for any of the purposes disclosed herein are included, andmethods of making the composition according to any of the methods ofmaking disclosed herein or other methods known in the art are included,unless otherwise indicated or unless it would be evident to one ofordinary skill in the art that a contradiction or inconsistency wouldarise.

Where elements are presented as lists, e.g., in Markush group format, itis to be understood that each subgroup of the elements is alsodisclosed, and any element(s) can be removed from the group. It shouldit be understood that, in general, where the invention, or aspects ofthe invention, is/are referred to as comprising particular elements,features, etc., certain embodiments of the invention or aspects of theinvention consist, or consist essentially of, such elements, features,etc. For purposes of simplicity those embodiments have not beenspecifically set forth in haec verba herein. It is noted that the term“comprising” is intended to be open and permits the inclusion ofadditional elements or steps.

Where ranges are given, endpoints are included. Furthermore, it is to beunderstood that unless otherwise indicated or otherwise evident from thecontext and understanding of one of ordinary skill in the art, valuesthat are expressed as ranges can assume any specific value or subrangewithin the stated ranges in different embodiments of the invention, tothe tenth of the unit of the lower limit of the range, unless thecontext clearly dictates otherwise.

In addition, it is to be understood that any particular embodiment ofthe present invention that falls within the prior art may be explicitlyexcluded from any one or more of the claims. Since such embodiments aredeemed to be known to one of ordinary skill in the art, they may beexcluded even if the exclusion is not set forth explicitly herein. Anyparticular embodiment of the compositions of the invention (e.g., anyaptamer, any disease, disorder, and/or condition, any linking agent, anymethod of administration, any therapeutic application, etc.) can beexcluded from any one or more claims, for any reason, whether or notrelated to the existence of prior art.

The publications discussed above and throughout the text are providedsolely for their disclosure prior to the filing date of the presentapplication. Nothing herein is to be construed as an admission that theinventors are not entitled to antedate such disclosure by virtue ofprior disclosure.

1. A targeted particle, comprising: a particle; a targeting moiety; anda therapeutic agent; wherein the particle comprises a polymeric matrix,wherein the polymeric matrix comprises a polyester, and wherein thetargeting moiety targets prostate cancer cells.
 2. The targeted particleof claim 1, wherein the particle is a nanoparticle.
 3. The targetedparticle of claim 1, wherein the particle is a microparticle. 4-5.(canceled)
 6. The targeted particle of claim 1, wherein the polyester isselected from the group consisting of PLGA, PLA, PGA, polycaprolactone,and polyanhydrides.
 7. The targeted particle of claim 1, wherein thepolyester is PLGA.
 8. The targeted particle of claim 1, wherein thepolymeric matrix comprises two or more polymers.
 9. The targetedparticle of claim 8, wherein at least one polymer is selected from thegroup consisting of polyethylenes, polycarbonates, polyanhydrides,polyhydroxyacids, polypropylfumerates, polycaprolactones, polyamides,polyacetals, polyethers, polyesters, poly(orthoesters),polycyanoacrylates, polyvinyl alcohols, polyurethanes, polyphosphazenes,polyacrylates, polymethacrylates, polycyanoacrylates, polyureas,polystyrenes, polyamines, and combinations thereof.
 10. The targetedparticle of claim 8, wherein at least one polymer is selected from thegroup consisting of polyesters, polyanhydrides, polyethers,polyurethanes, polymethacrylates, polyacrylates, and polycyanoacrylates.11. The targeted particle of claim 8, wherein at least one polymer ispolyalkylene glycol.
 12. The targeted particle of claim 8, wherein atleast one polymer is polyethylene glycol (PEG).
 13. The targetedparticle of claim 1, wherein the polymeric matrix comprises a copolymerof two or more polymers.
 14. The targeted particle of claim 13, whereinthe copolymer is a copolymer of PLGA and PEG. 15-21. (canceled)
 22. Thetargeted particle of claim 1, wherein the targeted particle comprises aprotein, lipid, or carbohydrate.
 23. The targeted particle of claim 1,wherein the targeting moiety is a protein.
 24. The targeted particle ofclaim 23, wherein the protein targeting moiety is capable ofspecifically binding to prostate cancer cells.
 25. The targeted particleof claim 23, wherein the protein targeting moiety is selected from thegroup consisting of antibodies, receptors, cytokines, peptide hormones,avimers, and affibodies.
 26. The targeted particle of claim 23, whereinthe protein targeting moiety is an antibody that specifically binds toprostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA).
 27. The targeted particle ofclaim 1, wherein the targeting moiety is a small molecule.
 28. Thetargeted particle of claim 27, wherein the small molecule targetingmoiety is capable of specifically binding to prostate cancer cells. 29.The targeted particle of claim 27, wherein the small molecule targetingmoiety is an antibody that specifically binds to prostate specificmembrane antigen (PSMA).
 30. The targeted particle of claim 27, whereinthe small molecule targeting moiety is selected from the groupconsisting of folic acid, prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA)peptidase inhibitors thiol and indole thiol derivatives, hydroxamatederivatives, PBDA-based inhibitors, urea-based inhibitors, androgenreceptor targeting agents, and polyamines.
 31. The targeted particle ofclaim 1, wherein the targeting moiety is a nucleic acid.
 32. Thetargeted particle of claim 31, wherein the nucleic acid targeting moietyis an aptamer.
 33. The targeted particle of claim 32, wherein theaptamer comprises one or more modified nucleotides and is substantiallyresistant to endonuclease degradation, exonuclease degradation, or bothendonuclease and exonuclease degradation.
 34. The targeted particle ofclaim 32, wherein the aptamer comprises one or more L-enantiomernucleosides.
 35. The targeted particle of claim 32, wherein one or moreinternal nucleotides at the 3′-end, 5′-end, or both 3′- and 5′-ends ofthe aptamer are inverted to yield a 3′-3′ or a 5′-5′ nucleotide linkage.36. The targeted particle of claim 32, wherein the aptamer is capable ofspecifically binding to prostate cancer cells.
 37. The targeted particleof claim 32, wherein the aptamer specifically binds to prostate specificmembrane antigen (PSMA).
 38. The targeted particle of claim 32, whereinthe aptamer comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO.: 1, aderivative thereof, or characteristic portion thereof.
 39. The targetedparticle of claim 32, wherein the aptamer is homologous to thenucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO.: 1, a derivative thereof, orcharacteristic portion thereof.
 40. The targeted particle of claim 32,wherein the aptamer comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO.: 2,a derivative thereof, or characteristic portion thereof.
 41. Thetargeted particle of claim 32, wherein the aptamer is homologous to thenucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO.: 2, a derivative thereof, orcharacteristic portion thereof.
 42. The targeted particle of claim 32,wherein the aptamer comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO.: 3,a derivative thereof, or characteristic portion thereof.
 43. Thetargeted particle of claim 32, wherein the aptamer is homologous to thenucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO.: 3, a derivative thereof, orcharacteristic portion thereof.
 44. The targeted particle of claim 1,wherein the specific binding of the targeting moiety to a target resultsin delivery of the therapeutic agent to prostate cancer cells.
 45. Thetargeted particle of claim 44, wherein the target is selected from thegroup consisting of proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, lipids, andcombinations thereof.
 46. The targeted particle of claim 44, wherein thetarget comprises a protein.
 47. The targeted particle of claim 45,wherein the target is selected from the group consisting of cell surfacereceptors, integrins, transmembrane proteins, ion channels, membranetransport proteins, intracellular proteins, soluble proteins, smallmolecules, tumor markers, characteristic portions thereof, andcombinations thereof.
 48. The targeted particle of claim 44, wherein thetarget is a tumor marker.
 49. The targeted particle of claim 44, whereinthe target is a prostate cancer specific marker.
 50. The targetedparticle of claim 48, wherein the target is selected from the groupconsisting of prostate specific antigen, human glandular kallikrein 2,prostatic acid phosphatase, prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA),androgen receptor, insulin-like growth factor, insulin-like growthfactor binding protein, transmembrane protein 24P4C12, prostate stemcell antigen, calveolin, PHOR-1, C-type lectin transmembrane antigen,protein encoded by 103P2D6, prostatic specific reductase polypeptide,and IL-11 receptor-α.
 51. The targeted particle of claim 48, wherein thetarget is PSMA.
 52. The targeted particle of claim 44, wherein thetarget is an endothelial cancer specific marker.
 53. The targetedparticle of claim 44, wherein the target comprises a nucleic acid. 54.The targeted particle of claim 44, wherein the target is a carbohydrateselected from the group consisting of glycoproteins, saccharides, andglycocalyx. 55-56. (canceled)
 57. The targeted particle of claim 1,wherein the therapeutic agent is selected from the group consisting ofsmall molecules, proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, lipids, andcombinations thereof.
 58. The targeted particle of claim 1, wherein thetherapeutic agent is an anti-cancer agent.
 59. The targeted particle ofclaim 1, wherein the therapeutic agent is selected from the groupconsisting of antibodies, recombinant antibodies, humanized antibodies,characteristic portions thereof, and combinations thereof.
 60. Thetargeted particle of claim 1, wherein the therapeutic agent is anenzyme.
 61. The targeted particle of claim 1, wherein the therapeuticagent is a small interfering RNA, a small hairpin RNA, or a microRNA.62. The targeted particle of claim 1, wherein the therapeutic agent is adiagnostic agent. 63-65. (canceled)
 66. The targeted particle of claim1, wherein the therapeutic agent is a prophylactic agent.
 67. (canceled)68. The targeted particle of claim 1, wherein the therapeutic agent is anutraceutical agent.
 69. (canceled)
 70. (canceled)
 71. The targetedparticle of claim 1, wherein the targeting moiety is non-covalentlyassociated with the particle.
 72. (canceled)
 73. The targeted particleof claim 1, wherein the targeting moiety is associated with the particlevia at least one covalent linkage. 74-82. (canceled)
 83. A method ofadministering a targeted particle to a subject, comprising: providing asubject, wherein the subject comprises at least one cell; providing thetargeted particle of claim 1; and administering the targeted particle tothe subject.
 84. The method of claim 83, wherein the targeted particlefurther comprises a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient. 85-90.(canceled)
 91. The method of claim 83, wherein the targeted particle isadministered to the subject by an oral, intravenous, intramuscular,intra-arterial, intramedullary, intrathecal, subcutaneous,intraventricular, transdermal, interdermal, rectal, intravaginal,intraperitoneal, topical, transdermal, muco sal, nasal, buccal, enteral,or sublingual route. 92-94. (canceled)
 95. The method of claim 83,wherein the targeted particle is administered directly to the prostate.96. The method of claim 83, wherein the targeted particle isadministered directly to prostate cancer cells.
 97. The method of claim96, wherein the targeted particle is administered directly to prostatecancer cells by topical administration.
 98. The method of claim 96,wherein the targeted particle is administered directly to prostatecancer cells by injection into tissue comprising the prostate cancercells.
 99. The method of claim 96, wherein the targeted particle isadministered to the subject by implantation of targeted particles at ornear prostate cancer cells by stereotactic surgery.
 100. The method ofclaim 96, wherein the targeted particle is administered to the subjectby implantation of targeted particles at or near prostate cancer cellsduring surgical removal of a tumor.
 101. A method of preparing atargeted particle comprising: providing a therapeutic agent; providing apolymer; providing a targeting moiety; mixing the polymer with thetherapeutic agent to prepare particles; and associating the particleswith the targeting moiety; wherein the polymer comprises a polyester,and wherein the targeting moiety targets prostate cancer cells. 102-105.(canceled)
 106. A targeted particle, comprising: a particle; a targetingmoiety; and a therapeutic agent; wherein the particle comprises apolymeric matrix, wherein the polymeric matrix comprises a polyester,wherein the targeting moiety targets prostate cancer cells, and whereinthe targeting moiety is a urea-based inhibitor.
 107. The targetedparticle of claim 106, wherein the urea-based inhibitor is ZJ 43, ZJ 11,ZJ 17, or ZJ
 38. 108. The targeted particle of claim 27, wherein thesmall molecule targeting moiety is selected from the group consisting ofa urea-based inhibitor.